All is Fair in Love and War
by kazalene
Summary: The CSI's are put to the test in a series of activities instigated by a certain someone but will it result in love for two of them? And is it true that all is fair in love and war? E/C as always. Chapter Seventeen up. COMPLETE.
1. Just a Little Black Rain Cloud

New idea, new story. (Just to clarify, this fic is **not** related to Recoil, Vapour or Acrylic.)

I came up with the plot after being forced to participate in a similar situation and was interested to see if I could recreate it CSI:Miami style.

Oh, but I started writing this before 'Ambush' and 'All in' so there aren't any references to these episodes.

Enjoy! x

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**Just a Little Black Rain Cloud...**

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Calleigh was _not_ happy. She entered the break room with such force that Ryan was surprised the glass door hadn't shattered in her wake. He caught Valera's eye and raised his eyebrows knowingly, before the two of them watched as Calleigh headed straight for the coffee and poured herself a cup, emitting a few 'huffs' and sighs as she did so. Ryan couldn't help but smile at the sight in front of him; the usually smartly dressed, professional Calleigh was in crops and a figure hugging white V-neck T-shirt, her blonde hair tied up messily. _'She still looked good though,'_ he couldn't help but notice. He knew Eric would probably kill him for thinking it; Ryan wasn't quite sure what, but there was definitely something going on between his two colleagues. But he was, however, a red-blooded male and besides, he only had feelings of friendship towards Calleigh; it had been her who had mentored him when he'd first joined the team and her who had acted as a necessary buffer between him and Eric...

Ryan nearly winced when she turned round to face him; her eyes were flashing dangerously.

"So, anyone know why we've been called in on our day off yet?" she asked, her voice tight. Aside from a short page that had told her to wear casual, comfortable clothes and not jeans, she had absolutely no idea, and the not knowing was driving her a little insane.

"No," Ryan croaked, shaking his head.

Calleigh sighed irritably and settled herself down at the table. She reached for a magazine and began to thumb through it carelessly.

Valera caught Ryan's eye with a knowing look. She wasn't particularly happy herself that she'd had to come in but she was a little curious. A loud _thud_ broke her thoughts as Calleigh practically threw the magazine across the table.

"Where's Eric?" she asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Uh, he's not here yet," Ryan shrugged as he turned around to get a look at the two people who had just entered the room. Natalia flung herself down on the couch while Tripp headed for the biscuit tin, both muttering a quite "hey" as they did so.

An uncomfortable silence diffused through the room, none of them particularly wanting to be there, but Calleigh's clear annoyance was heightening the tension. Normally, she'd like to think that she would have been able to control her emotions better but today was Saturday, her sacred day of relaxation and and she was extremely pissed off about having to work.

The door opened again and the figure that moved through it did nothing to enhance her mood. Rick Stetler settled himself down in front of her and produced a clipboard. Calleigh studied his appearance; he was wearing a baseball jersey, a ridiculous hat that there really was no explanation for, and a whistle dangled lazily around his neck.

"Morning all. Sorry to call you in on your day off – " He paused when he heard Calleigh scoff. "Something wrong CSI Duquense?"

"Well, on the brightside, things couldn't get worse," she replied with a tight smile.

Before he could retort, another figure moved through the door behind him.

"What the hell Rick?" Eric growled as he made his way to the coffee machine.

Rick's eyes narrowed. "Nice to see you've finally arrived. I thought we'd discussed your punctuation."

Eric sighed as he sat down next to Calleigh, and shrugged. He caught her eye as Stetler's phone went and the man temporarily excused himself, and Eric couldn't help but notice that she looked _good. _There had always been a mutual attraction between the two of them but lately, it felt as though things were definitely heating up. Since he'd been shot, he'd revaluated his life and had come to notice the little things that he'd taken for granted in their relationship. The way they always knew what each other was thinking, the way that they were always quick to defend each other and, of course, the deep felt trust they both shared were just some of the many things he could think of. He was slowly coming to realise that he was in love with her although in hindsight, a part of him probably always had been.

Calleigh allowed the eye contact to linger for a moment; _'he was staring, why couldn't she?'_ His hair was messy, like he'd just gotten out of bed and a light shadow along his jaw line told her that he hadn't shaved this morning; she wasn't quite sure why, but she found that it made him seem even more attractive. She moved her eyes away from his and they began to travel down his body. Like her, he'd opted for a white T-shirt that served only to enhance his muscles and he'd pulled on some khaki shorts. Realising that her gaze had lingered a little too long, she looked away as a blush started to creep in, her brain silently hoping that he hadn't noticed.

Eric smiled; he had. He tried to catch her eye again but Stetler interrupted them.

"Now I suppose you're all wondering why you're here," he was a little put out when no one, save from Valera, showed any interest. "Human Resources have decided that it is time for a team building session and they've asked yours truly, to lead it," he continued proudly.

Rick surveyed the room for a moment. Valera looked puzzled, while Ryan was frowning. Tripp looked as though he was asleep and Natalia had raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed. He turned his attention to Eric and Calleigh who had both adopted matching scowls; they were _not_ happy. With a sigh, Rick ignored the reaction of the group and began to pass a piece of paper around the room. "This is today's itinerary. It is designed to help improve team relations and I intend to make it a success. Don't look at me like that, CSI Duquesne, this day is supposed to be fun and I refuse to let you and your rain cloud stop it from being so."

"Oh, I don't know Rick. If it was supposed to be fun, they wouldn't have put you in charge now would they?" Calleigh smiled back at him sweetly, deliberately enhancing her Southern accent.

Stetler shot a glare around the room as the group stifled their laugher, some of them having more success than others. Once he was satisfied that he had the attention of the room once more, he began again. "As you can see, we've got a lot to do today so let's get moving. I'll meet you all outside in ten. There's a mini bus waiting for us," he paused as he moved for the door. "Any questions?"

"You know when I said things couldn't get any worse?" a Southern accent drawled.

"Anyone else other than Miss. Cynical over here?" Rick sighed.

"Actually, I do have a serious question Rick," Calleigh began tightly, choosing to ignore his remark as an idea crept in. He drew his arms across his chest and waited for her to continue. "Will you be participating in our activities, or are you just going to be a bystander?"

"I'll be participating. I believe that it's important to lead by example, why?"

Calleigh stifled her sarcastic comment; the idea of Rick leading by example was both hilarious _and_ terrifying, and she wasn't easily scared. Instead, she chose to feign innocence. "No reason; just curious," she shrugged, flashing him smile.

"Uh, huh," Rick eyed her curiously. "Anyone else?"

Valera cleared her throat. "Yeah, where's Horatio?"

"He's meeting us there, he's just tying up a few loose ends of a case. Now if there's nothing else, I'll see you all outside shortly." He flashed them a smirk before he left the room.

"God hates me," Ryan moaned as soon as the door was shut.

Eric glanced down at the first item on the itinerary and exchanged a look with Calleigh. She raised her eyebrows playfully, her mouth toying with a knowing smile.

"Actually Ryan," She turned to face him. "That depends on whose team you're on."

Ryan studied her for a moment. Her eyes were sparkling dangerously, her brain obviously conspiring wickedly, and one look at Delko told him that Eric was well aware what Calleigh was thinking, but before he could ask what was going on, Calleigh rose and left the room, Eric following her out.

He looked around at the rest of the group. Natalia's face reflected his own puzzlement and Frank still looked as though he was asleep, but Valera's eyes had widened. She was staring down at the schedule, a look of horror creeping across her features.

"Oh, God," she whispered.

Frowning, Ryan looked at the piece of paper in his hand, his frown quickly turning to a grimace. "Oh, God," he echoed Valera. _'This was not going to be fun.'_

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If you're interested to see where I'm going, I'll get started on the next chapter. :D


	2. It Takes Patience to Capture the Castle

Alright, ask and you shall receive.

Enjoy! x

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**It Takes Patience to Capture the Castle...**

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Natalia grimaced as she climbed out of the mini bus; she'd managed to put her foot straight into a puddle of brown, sticky mud. With an effort, she tugged herself free and headed over to where Eric and Calleigh were already suiting up. The two of them had been whispering for the entire journey and she couldn't help but feel a little concerned; _'they were definitely planning something.'_

She took a moment to survey her surroundings. Stetler had brought them to a wood, the kind of wood that cast shadows everywhere with its towering trees that blocked out the sun, and obstacles littered the ground making the area perfect for activities like this. She stifled the urge to test an echo and turned to face Eric as he handed her a suit.

"I am definitely a city girl," she sighed.

"I second that," Valera moaned, as she flung herself down on the wooden bench to the side.

Calleigh exchanged a look with Eric and turned her attention to the squirming figure behind him. Ryan had managed to get himself stuck in his body suit and was making no effort to hide his annoyance. With a final grunt, he untangled himself and joined Valera on the bench. _'He hated this already.'_

"You okay?" Calliegh teased.

Ryan eyed her suspiciously; she had that wicked glint in her eyes that told him that he should be _**very **_afraid. And as soon as the thought entered his brain, she picked up her gun and cocked it, turning it over in her hands to inspect it, and then with another playful look at Eric, she headed over to where Stetler was gesturing for them.

"That woman," Ryan swallowed as he watched her go, "scares me," he finished, pretty much summing up the feeling of the group.

"Alright team! Get over here!" Stetler barked.

"And that man," Valera gestured over to him, "is a jerk."

_**/EC/**_

Stetler watched as the CSI's slowly dragged themselves over, a smirk playing about his mouth. He turned his attention to his left when a voice spoke to him.

"Can't get the staff these days, can you, Rick?" Calleigh teased.

He studied her for a moment; there was something about her enthusiasm that was making him nervous. He glanced at Eric who, as always, was by her side and he couldn't help but notice that both of them had matching playful smiles.

"Seriously, Stetler, of all the possible activities that you could have chosen, why did you have to pick paintball?" Ryan groaned, pulling Rick from his thoughts.

He turned to face the group that had now assembled in front of him and met Ryan with a glare. "It happens to be a very good team game. It tests leadership, cooperation and trust."

Ryan moved his gaze to Calleigh - _'he definitely didn't trust her right now'_ - and he turned round when he heard the sound of footsteps behind him.

"Lieutenant Caine, nice of you to join us." Stetler raised his eyebrows.

Horatio forced a half smile and positioned his body to the side, adopting his familiar stance. "My pleasure Rick," he replied tightly as he removed his sunglasses and put them somewhere safe.

"Right, now that we're all here, I have taken the liberty of splitting you up into teams. Ryan, Horatio and Natalia you're with me - we're Team One. Calleigh, Valera, Frank and Eric, you're Team Two." Rick caught the playful glance that Calleigh shot at Eric and changed his mind, quickly. "Actually, Ryan and Eric swap. We don't want this day hampered by Ken and Barbie here."

Calleigh narrowed her eyes and bit back her retort. She and Eric had taken into account the possibility that they might not have been on the same team and Stetler had in fact, just made their goal a hell of a lot easier. So instead, Calleigh smiled at him sweetly, cursing him silently.

Apparently satisfied that he had adverted any potential sabotage, Rick began again. "Okay, Team Two, your mission is to flank our base. You must work as a team to break down our defence and you have an hour to do so. Three hits to a limb is a kill, it's two to a torso and one for this little area here," Rick pointed to the red circle that was on each of their camouflage suits, the one that was situated over their heart.

Calleigh smiled; 's_o that's the bullseye."_

"Any questions?" he continued.

"Uh, yeah," Tripp grunted. "Does it hurt?"

"No, Frank, the ammo's paint not bullets," Rick smirked.

Calleigh sighed; she was getting restless now and she turned to face the group. "Alright ya'll, how 'bout we get this show on the road?" And with a final look at Eric, she headed for the yellow flag that signalled her team's starting point.

Ryan followed her, not sure whether to be relieved or not that he was on her team. He had no doubt that in swapping him with Eric, Stetler had inadvertently played into her hands, and it was with that thought that he decided on relief; he was on the team that was going to win, and the team where he wasn't going to get hurt…

As soon as Calleigh's team were out of sight, hidden behind one of the various haystacks or obstacles, Rick moved his team to vantage points and together they waited for the Southern Belle's attack.

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh was crouched behind a line of wooden barrels and Ryan was situated as close as he could possibly get to her without risk of personal injury. He was a little concerned about being pummelled with a paint gun, and had put his trust in Calleigh to get him through this game unscathed. Valera and Tripp were crouched behind a haystack that ran parallel to them.

"Calleigh?" he whispered.

She didn't answer, her green eyes instead focused on studying the horizon.

"Calleigh?" he tried again.

"Sshh!" She shot him a glare. Her gaze then returned to its previous position, scanning ahead for the sign that told her when to move and in which direction. She bit her lip in concentration and continued to wait patiently.

Frank exchanged a look with Valera; he was starting to get a little bored. With a yawn, he stretched and raised his arms above his head, crying out when in quick succession, three pellets hit his hand, turning it a mixture of blue and yellow.

Calleigh turned to face him, her eyes mirroring the angry green stain that was spreading across his skin.

"Tripp, you're out!" Rick's voice shouted from an invisible place.

"I thought it wasn't supposed to hurt, Stetler!" he shot back, cradling his rapidly swelling hand. With a sigh, he stood up and headed back to the wooden bench in the clearing.

"Now what?" Valera whispered.

Calleigh turned to face her. "Now, we move. Hotshot there just gave away our position." She surveyed the distance between their current hiding spot and another one that was a few feet away. Eventually, she decided that there were two possible routes that they could take.

Ryan tensed when he saw it - that light that told him she had a plan and he knew he wasn't going to like it. Sure enough, she turned to face him.

"Okay, Ryan, you see that fence there? I need you to run for it. Approach it from this direction." She pointed to the route. "Oh, and move in zig-zags. Make as much movement as possible."

"What? You're asking me to be a human target!" he hissed. _'So much for not getting hurt,'_ he thought bitterly.

"No, I'm asking you to serve as a distraction, and, besides, your zig-zags will throw off their aim. They won't hit you, I promise." She flashed him one of her sweetest smiles and he almost believed her.

"What about me?" Valera asked, her eyes wild.

"We're going to take the second route, around that tree. But we'll take cover behind that haystack there."

"So you're using me as a sacrifice! Calleigh, they'll know my position!" Ryan raised his eyebrows, his voice a little hysterical.

"Exactly, which means they'll attempt to pop you and when they do, I'll be able to see their position and hopefully cap one of them. It will be a team effort."

Ryan didn't look so sure.

"Trust me," she smiled wickedly. "Now on the count of three…"

Ryan flexed his muscles.

"One…"

He took in a deep breath.

"Two…"

He exhaled.

"Three!"

He ran as fast as he possibly could. Flashes of green, blue, yellow and purple flew past him as he weaved in the direction that Calleigh had told him to go. If he didn't live through this, he was going to come back and haunt her. _'He'd make sure of it.'_ He could hear shouts echoing around him as Calleigh's plan began to take effect and concentrated solely on getting to his destination, and Ryan could have sworn his heart stopped beating when a slice of blue missed his face by an inch. He breathed a sigh of relief when finally, he found the fence and flung himself down on the ground. Wincing at the series of _splats_ that smacked against the wood, he closed his eyes in an attempt to compose himself; but before he had a chance, a loud cry brought him out of his daze. Puzzled, he glanced over to the haystack where Calleigh and Valera had moved. The two women were grinning triumphantly, and he noticed that the tip of Calleigh's paint gun had a small trickle of yellow running teasingly down it.

"Natalia you're out!" Rick's voice boomed.

Ryan widened his eyes. _"You shot Natalia?"_ he mouthed.

Calleigh shrugged. Now they were back on equal footing; each team had three members left. "Yes," she hissed. "Now freeze until I say you can move!"

Ryan winced as another _splat_ smacked against the wooden fence. _'Trust me,' _he thought._ 'I'm not going anywhere.'_

Satisfied that Ryan had understood her, Calleigh poked her head out from around the haystack, just enough so that she could see. She felt Valera fidget next to her and gave her a small kick.

"Ow! Cal – "

"Sshh!" she breathed, cutting the other woman off.

Valera frowned and began to rub the dull ache in her leg. It was typical that she'd been paired up with quite possibly the most determined person on the planet, and Stetler had brought out her competitive side. _'Ugh,'_ Valera thought._ 'She hated this.'_

_**/EC/**_

Eric was lying on his front behind a rather large log. To his right, behind a wooden crate, was Stetler. Horatio was further back, crouched in the bushes. So far, he and Calleigh hadn't been able to execute their plan but whilst Tripp had inadvertently delayed them, it had resulted in the removal of Natalia which meant one less witness for what he was about to do.

He glanced over at Rick who was watching the now multi-coloured fence intently - his hands were gripped so tight around his gun that his knuckles were turning white with the pressure. Stifling his urge to laugh, Eric moved his head to look at Horatio, but frowned when he couldn't see him. Eric sighed; he couldn't wait any longer, they were running out of time. If Horatio saw him, he saw him; '_it was going to be worth it.'_ Carefully, he removed the small mirror that Calleigh had given him and propped it up against a rock, making sure it was positioned at an angle that caught the light whenever the gentle breeze opened up a gap in the trees.

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh's eyes tensed. _'Was that it?'_ She kept still for a moment, waiting for clarification. This time, she definitely saw it; a sharp glint that gave away his position. Her brain kicked into life as she surveyed the area. She'd agreed with Eric that he should keep Stetler on his right at all times, allowing her deduce where he was. She moved her gaze away from the log to the crate that was situated a few feet away and smiled; _'that's where he is.'_

"Okay, Ryan, Valera, here's what I need you to do…"

_**/EC/**_

Eric tensed, knowing that her attack was imminent. He knew she wouldn't intentionally shoot him - or at least he hoped she wouldn't - but he wanted to be ready to move should he need to. He glanced over at Rick who was still frozen in his position, his eyes sharp. _'He was taking this way too seriously,'_ Eric noted as heard a shuffle from behind him somewhere, signalling that Horatio had just shifted his weight.

He looked back at the painted fence and caught sight of Ryan peering around it. His finger instinctively reached for the trigger and he had to override his impulse to shoot.

"Delko!" a voice hissed from his right. "You've got a clear shot! Take it!"

Eric sighed and slipped his finger over the trigger once more. He took aim and fired, hitting a tree just to the left of Ryan, and watched as the other man took cover again.

"How did you miss!" Stetler whispered in disbelief.

Eric shrugged; _'I didn't,'_ he thought. As much as he'd liked to have capped Ryan, he knew that Calleigh needed him for her attack. Maybe if she hadn't lost Frank…

"Delko!" Rick cut in. "Do you see that?"

Eric looked to where Stetler gestured and caught a glimpse of a pair of legs as they ducked behind a crate, and he seized the opportunity. "I'm going to move forward; check it out." He wasn't quite sure where he was heading, but he knew that Calleigh would keep an eye out for him.

Stetler nodded, his gaze settling back to the wooden fence where he assumed Ryan was still taking cover.

"Horatio, cover me," Eric whispered.

"Eric…" He heard a rustle as Horatio shifted his body, "Eric, I've got your back."

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh smiled as she watched Valera throw herself behind the crate. She glanced over to Eric's position, hoping he'd caught sight of Valera's manoeuvre. Moving Ryan had been trickier; everytime he moved he triggered a rainbow. She'd told him to move backwards, towards a stone wall that he could use to get to a good position, just to the left of Valera. And she smiled again when she saw he'd taken up his new hiding spot. She made eye contact with them both and slowly, they began to move forwards, crawling along the floor towards the crate that she knew Rick was hiding behind.

Just then, she caught sight of Eric sprinting towards a large hedge on her right and she checked her team's position; if she moved to the hedge she'd still be able to make contact with them. She grabbed a handful of debris from the ground and threw it at the now multi-coloured fence that had been Ryan's hiding spot. Another rainbow erupted, spraying on another coat, and she used the cover to run over to Eric undetected.

She flung herself down next to him, hardly out of breath and grinned at him. "So far so good."

He nodded and reached out to brush away a stray leaf that had got caught up in her hair, brushing her cheek lightly as he did so. His eyes found hers and she held his gaze for a moment, neither of them moving.

"Eric…" she whispered. But she broke eye contact when a jet of red shot past the hedge and hit the already redecorated fence. "Stetler can't think Ryan's still there, surely?" she breathed, her earlier thought suppressed.

"Isn't he?" Eric frowned, the butterflies in his stomach still fluttering.

Calleigh wiggled her eyebrows at him playfully. "No, he and Valera are currently flanking your leader." She flashed him a smile.

"You know, just when I think I've got you all figured out, you go and surprise me again."

"Well, a girl's got to maintain some mystery," her eyes danced back at him.

Eric laughed. Whilst he'd always admired her professionalism, he could get used to playful Calleigh. Sure, she allowed him to see this side of her every now and then, but today she seemed more reachable, more daring, and he loved it. _'He loved her.'_

Calleigh bit her lip. He was staring _again_ and she found herself wanting him to; she loved the way he looked at her. Normally, a part of her would be terrified, but she didn't know if it was the adrenalin or the knowledge that she was about to get one up on Stetler that was making her more carefree.

"So, uh, what's our next move?" he finally asked her, eyes still locked with hers.

"You've got twenty minutes, Calleigh!" Rick Stetler's voice boomed from behind his crate.

She rolled her eyes and poked her head around the hedge. Ryan and Valera were in a good position; the former on Rick's left, the latter on his right. She caught their eyes and motioned for them to hold fire whilst she found her own vantage point. Calleigh's eyes flickered around her surroundings; she wanted the best shot possible and eventually, she turned back to Eric.

"Okay, here's what we're going to do…"

_**/EC/**_

Stetler tensed; he could have sworn he saw movement around that fence. Ryan had been a sitting duck for at least half an hour now, and he sighed irritably before he caught sight of Eric sprinting back over to him. Rick frowned; there was no paintfire. _'Why?'_ He surveyed the area intently, looking for something, anything. Eric's movements were hardly subtle and he was surprised that Calleigh hadn't opened fire. His body froze; _'something was wrong.'_ He flickered his gaze back to Eric again and watched as he flung himself back down behind the log.

"Couldn't find anything," he shrugged, feigning innocence.

Rick studied him carefully. "Uh huh," he eventually replied, still a little suspicious.

Eric held back a smile when out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a flash of blonde slide in front of Rick's crate; he had successfully distracted Stetler.

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh caught Ryan and Valera's eyes and nodded, signalling the start of the attack and, simultaneously, Ryan and Valera fired their guns upwards, shooting a fountain of paint towards the sky.

Behind his crate, Stetler jumped, the sound of the paint _splat_ startling him. He glanced over at Eric. "_What's going on?" _he mouthed.

Eric poked his head round the log and locked his eyes with Calleigh, while Ryan and Valera continued to blindly fire paint in all directions. With a smile at her, he turned back to Rick.

"You see that haystack over there?" Eric pointed a little way forward. Rick nodded. "When I say go, move to it." He found Calleigh again and widened his eyes, telling her to get ready, watching as she relayed the signal to Ryan and Valera before he whispered to Stetler, "Go!"

Rick stood up, expecting to have a clear run to the haystack, but instead found that he came face to face with a certain Southern beauty.

"Hi, Rick." She cocked her head to the side, grinning at him devilishly, before she pulled the trigger and watched as a fist of yellow shot forwards and landed snugly on the patch above his heart. At the same time, Ryan and Valera opened fire, making a rainbow out of him. "Guess this means you're out?" Calleigh smiled as she looked down at her watch. "Ooh," she shrugged innocently, "and with twelve minutes to spare." She directed a knowing smile Eric's way and headed back to the clearing where Frank and Natalia were sat, mouth's wide open.

"Did she really just do that?" Frank asked.

"Uh huh," Natalia replied. "Think I got off lightly," she sighed as rubbed the shoulder that Calleigh had decorated.

Frank nodded and reached for the itinerary, grimacing when he saw the next item on the agenda;_ 'The day was about to get worse.'_

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Much, much worse...

Anyway, hope you're all enjoying the weekend. I'll try to update soon.

Reviews very much appreciated :D


	3. Because Actions Have Consequences

Allow me a moment to rant. British Summertime started a few days ago and right now it is currently snowing, not pathetic little flakes but a serious blizzard. Global warming my bum!

Anyway, here is the next chapter.

Enjoy! x

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**Because Actions Have Consequences…**

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Ryan looked at his watch and glanced over at the three people that were stood a few feet away. Rick had been disciplining Calleigh and Eric for a good ten minutes now, and the rest of the group were starting to get a little bored. A shuffle to Ryan's right suddenly captured his attention as Horatio rose from the bench and reached for his sunglasses. "Uh, where are you going, H?" he asked.

"I, Mr. Wolfe," Horatio paused to put on his sunglasses. "I am going to find out what's going on."

The group exchanged a look as Horatio walked away and turned their attention back to the commotion, suddenly interested again.

_**/EC/**_

Rick was still reeling from the attack. He glanced down at his multi-coloured, previously camouflaged body suit and then looked back up as Calleigh and Eric stifled their laughter.

"I don't know what you're laughing about!" he spat. "The two of you have just rendered this exercise useless! You are supposed to be able to trust your team mates, not have them betray you!"

Calleigh glared back at him, suddenly a little insulted. Trust was a big thing as far as she was concerned, and Rick suggesting that she was untrustworthy was both hurtful and ridiculous, especially since it came from the guy who was the complete antithesis of the word trust. Before she could retort, however, another voice interrupted.

"Rick…" Horatio paused dramatically. "Rick, I suggest you stop accusing CSI's Delko and Duquesne of sabotage and continue on with the next exercise. We're on a tight schedule here."

Stetler's eyes widened and he took a step backwards, trying to regain his composure. "Accusing?" he began in disbelief, "Horatio, CSI Delko and CSI Duquesne have just both ruined the primary goal here. Trust and cooperation are major factors in teamwork! Delko just betrayed his own team!"

"Actually, Rick…" Horatio smiled and looked down at the floor. He slowly raised his head up as he began to speak again. "As far as I'm concerned, they did as you asked. Calleigh demonstrated excellent leadership skills, everyone cooperated and as for trust, well, her team would not have been able to have flanked our base without it. Both Ryan and Valera trusted her, and she put her trust in Eric to guide them without betrayal."

Eric exchanged a look with Calleigh, a little shocked at Horatio's outburst. She gave him a look that said, _'go with it'_ and turned back to look at Stetler.

Rick's mouth hung open, his anger and humiliation temporarily rendering him speechless. He drew his arms across his chest and sighed irritably. "Okay," he eventually managed. "Let's move onto the next exercise but if either of you," He pointed to both Calleigh and Eric, "if either of you do anything else to ruin this day I will come down on you so fast that –"

"Rick," Calleigh cut in, flashing him her sweetest smile, "you have nothing to worry about."

He eyed her for a moment, almost believing her, but before he could say anything more, she was gone, striding confidently back over to the rest of the group. He switched his gaze to Eric who merely shrugged innocently and then turned to catch Calleigh up. Rick's eyes narrowed; _'he was going to have to watch them both very, very carefully.'_

"Alright!" he barked. "Everyone back on the mini bus!"

He was met with a collective groan as the group began to pick their way slowly over to their awaiting transportation, and he couldn't help but notice that Eric and Calleigh were hovering back, whispering again. Any feeling of nervousness was pushed aside, however, when an idea crept into his mind about how he could make the next exercise particularly difficult for them; _'if they wanted to play dirty, then he'd give them dirty.'_

_**/EC/**_

Tripp sighed at the sight in front of him; Stetler had brought them to a field that was littered with tires, climbing walls, nets and other uninviting obstacles. Frank sighed again; he'd known that he wasn't going to like it as soon as he'd read the itinerary. A groan from behind him as Valera stepped off the mini bus told him that he wasn't alone in his thinking; _'this was going to be torture.'_

"And what exactly does this teach us, Stetler?" Frank heard Ryan ask.

The group turned their attention to Rick as they waited for his answer. He emitted an irritated sigh and placed his hands on his hips. "An assault course tests both physical and mental strength, as well as _discipline_," he emphasised the last word and shot a glare at both Eric and Calleigh. "Now, I want everyone in a line. There's been a slight change of plan."

Ryan's eyes widened and he tensed, knowing he wasn't going to like it, and sure enough, Rick reached into the bag that he'd brought from the mini bus and produced a rather lengthy piece of rope.

"Uh, what's that for?" Tripp asked.

"Well, Frank, seeing how much you all love _teamwork_, I figured I'd make this more of a team activity. You will be tied together and you must make your way around this assault course in the best possible time. You're going to need to rely heavily on communication because if the person behind you isn't ready for your movement, then they are going to fall over or crash into you and we wouldn't want that now, would we?" he smirked.

Ryan glanced over to the assault course for a moment and his gaze settled onto a wooden, rickety bridge which sat over a rather large mud pool. _'Oh, God.'_

"Christ, Rick! Could you tie it any tighter!" he heard Natalia wince and turned to watch as Stetler tied the rope around her waist.

Begrudgingly, Ryan allowed Stetler to tie it around him, too and stifled a groan when he realised who was being tied behind him: Calleigh. _'Oh, yeah,'_ he thought. _'I'm going in that mud pool.'_

"Hey! Watch your hands," she warned as Stetler slipped the rope around her. Calleigh shot him a glare and watched as he attached Eric behind her. "Are you joining on the end?" she asked.

Rick pulled the knot around Eric tight and turned to face her with a smirk. "No, I'm joining on the front. Where I lead, you shall follow."

Calleigh rolled her eyes and drew her arms across her chest, annoyance surging through her when she realised that Rick was going to lead them around the potentially hazardous assault course like dogs.

In front of Natalia, Valera and Frank exchanged a look, both equally irritated at this new development. Valera ran a hand through her hair and took a step forwards, trying to see where Horatio was and triggered a yelp from behind her. She turned round to find that her movement had dragged Ryan and Natalia forwards and Eric had, had to catch Calleigh to prevent her from falling over.

"Sorry!" she called sheepishly as two out of the four glared at her.

Calleigh had locked eyes with Eric, her hand in his whilst his other hand had found the small of her back, holding her an inch from the ground. His face was so close to her that his breath tickled her skin, and she felt her heart begin to pump faster. She held his gaze for a moment as she tried to regain control of her speech and, eventually, she forced a shy smile. "Thank you," she managed.

"No problem," he breathed back, clearly just as affected by the moment as she was.

Neither of them moved until Calleigh found her voice again. "Hey, Eric, could you, uh, pull me back up now?" she said, hoping that it hadn't come out as a croak.

Eric's senses suddenly returned and he obliged, looking away shyly as she got her balance back. He opened his mouth to speak but Stetler beat him to it.

"Alright," Rick paused, as he attached himself to the rope in front of Horatio. "We're going to start over there. Get ready to move."

The group glanced over to where Rick gestured and emitted a collective groan; they were going to start with the crawling net.

"Oh, this is not fun," Natalia muttered in front of Ryan and he laughed bitterly; to say that crawling in mud under netting whilst being tied to your colleagues was not fun was an understatement. Before he could convey his thought verbally, however, he suddenly felt his body jolt forwards as Rick began to move, and Ryan groaned again; _'he was going to need therapy after this.'_

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh's mind was racing as she watched the line in front of her disappear under the net. She was trying to think of a way to get Stetler back and was having a hard time coming up with something. It wasn't for lack of trying, though; it was because she couldn't shake the memory of being held by Eric; every thought trail came back to him. Calleigh sighed in her discomfort and drew her arms across her chest, being tugged forward everytime the line moved. The moment they'd shared during paintball had been adrenalin fuelled; she'd just been caught up in the fun of annoying Stetler. But when Eric had reached out to catch her just now, well, that was out of her comfort zone.

Realising that it was her time to crouch down and follow Ryan under the net and along the muddy ground, she grimaced, and her brain suddenly kicked in with renewed force and a different focus; _'Stetler was going to pay for this.'_

Eric watched as Calleigh's body disappeared under the net, and he positioned himself to follow her. He'd noticed her obvious internal struggle and thinking that he was pretty sure that he knew what it was about, he couldn't help but smile that his manoeuvre had affected her; _'that must mean something, surely?'_ Before he had time to ponder the thought, though, the line surged forwards and he was forced to crawl under the net, trying to avoid a mouthful of mud as he did so.

_**/EC/**_

Once Stetler had emerged out of the other side of the net, he stood up and looked over his shoulder to check the status of his team. Horatio was just climbing out after him and the rest of them were still worming their way to the exit. "Hurry up everyone! I'm timing remember!" he barked.

Behind him, Ryan heard Calleigh sigh irritably and he took a deep breath, trying to prevent himself from shouting at Rick. He suddenly felt something grab his foot and he was about to cry out when he realised it was Calleigh. Ryan glanced back at her and raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"I've got an idea – " she began.

"Uh, no, Calleigh, "he cut in. "Not again. Not when there's mud and water and potential for serious hurt."

"Ryan, shut up. I got you through paintball, didn't I? Now listen, I need you to pass some instructions along the line. Make sure Stetler doesn't hear."

Sighing, and realising that he had no choice in the matter, Ryan listened as she relayed the message to him. Then with an effort, he reached out and poked Natalia, just managing to dodge her kick.

"Ryan, keep your hands to yourself!" she hissed.

He rolled his eyes and looked back at Calleigh; she shot him an encouraging smile and widened her eyes. So with a heavy sigh, Ryan tried again; _'Calleigh owed him big for this.'_

_**/EC/**_

Once the team had emerged from the net, Rick began to move forwards again, towards their next obstacle: a tire wire.

Tripp groaned when he saw it and frowned. "How are we s'posed to get across that when we're all tied up?"

Rick turned to face him and smirked. "You tell me."

Frank exchanged a look with Valera and she shrugged back at him. Natalia ran a hand through her hair as she considered a possible solution, whilst Ryan's gaze settled onto another obstacle a few feet away that he _really_ wasn't looking forward to.

"Rick…" Horatio began, "what are the rules?"

Stetler turned to face him and placed his hands on his hips. "Everyone must use the tire wire and everyone must get across it," he stated simply.

The group looked back at him blankly and he settled his gaze on Calleigh. "How about we ask Duquesne? She seems full of ideas today."

Her eyes narrowed as she struggled to stifle her retort; she wasn't going to give him the satisfaction. And so instead, she forced him a smile and studied their current obstacle. "We're all going to have to sit on it," she eventually answered.

"Uh, Calleigh? I don't think it's going to take our weight," Ryan replied.

She glanced up at the thin wire that the tire was attached to and shrugged. "Guess we'll just have to find out, won't we? Now you guys get on it first, overlap your legs -"

"I swear to God, Stetler, if you sit on my lap – " Ryan cut in.

"No one is going to sit on anyone's lap. It's going to be a tight squeeze, but the tire is wide enough for you guys to fit round," Calleigh spoke over him.

"Well how are you, Valera and Natalia going to fit on as well?" Tripp asked.

Calleigh bit her lip as she considered this. "Just get on it and we'll take it from there," she shrugged, feeling her legs move as people began to walk in various directions to take up the positions that she'd told them to. Once the jostling had stopped, she found herself stood behind Eric and Ryan, a small gap poking out between their bodies. She glanced over to where Natalia was, just a few inches away and also behind Ryan, and saw that Valera was behind Frank and Horatio.

"Now what?" Tripp asked.

Calleigh glanced down at the gap between Eric and Ryan and smiled. "Okay, Natalia stand between Ryan and Frank, and Valera do the same between Frank and Horatio. Eric and Stetler, I need you guys to move closer together so we can keep this tire balanced. I'll slot in between Eric and Ryan."

The group began to do as she asked. And after a lot of fuss and moaning, Calleigh stepped into her slot and kicked off the ground as she did so, causing the tire to surge forwards across the gap, taking the CSI's with it.

Ryan tensed and closed his eyes as they flew through the air, waiting for the sound of a _snap_ that he assumed was inevitable; the strain their weight was putting on the wire was surely too much. He opened them when he heard a different sound; a _thud_ as the tire connected with the wooden post at the other end of the gap, signalling that they'd made it. Ryan watched as Calleigh stepped off effortlessly and shot a triumphant look at Rick.

She would have liked to have walked away at that point, but was inconvenienced by the fact that they were all tied together; so she made do with turning her back and focusing on their next obstacle: the climbing wall.

_**/EC/**_

Once Stetler had assembled them all in front of it, he turned to face them. "Right, I need you guys to be careful when we go over this –"

"Oh, now you care about safety," Ryan muttered bitterly, still a little shocked that the tire had taken their weight.

Rick shot him a glare and continued. "You're going to need to listen to me carefully so no one falls off. When I say move, you move, and when I say stop, you stop. Got it?" He didn't wait for their reply and instead positioned himself in front of the climbing wall, ready to start the journey upwards.

Calleigh exchanged a bored look with Eric as Stetler began to climb. The _next_ obstacle was the one where Rick needed to be concerned about safety, and she was starting to get impatient; Stetler was bringing out all of her worst qualities, some she wasn't even aware she had. A scream made her snap her eyes back to the climbing wall; Frank had managed to slide back down it a little, nearly crushing Valera behind him.

"A little warning would be nice, Tripp!" Valera snapped.

Calleigh caught Eric's eye as she tried to stifle her laugher, and he flashed her a playful smile. She broke eye contact when she was tugged forwards as Ryan got ready to climb the wall, and looked upwards to see how far Rick had climbed to. He was nearly at the top now and Calleigh heard Eric sigh behind her as his own impatience grew. But before she could say anything, she was forced to move again.

Eric watched as Calleigh reached out and effortlessly began to haul herself up the wall. He knew she'd probably kill him for watching, but he couldn't help but admire the view, and a smile tugged at his mouth. He rolled his eyes, however, when his turn came to begin the journey upwards, too.

With a triumphant sigh, Rick pulled himself up the final segment of the wall and swung his legs over it as he began the descent back down. "Everyone okay?" he called, not really caring, and was met with a series of grunts and mutters. He smiled; _'how he was loving this.'_

_**/EC/**_

Ryan breathed a sigh of relief when his feet finally touched the ground again. He'd never particularly liked heights and the climbing wall had definitely _not_ been fun. He moved away from it, allowing Calleigh to set her own feet down on the ground, and turned his attention to the next obstacle; the one he'd been dreading.

Calleigh smiled when she saw it; the obstacle she'd been looking forward too. She caught Eric's eye as he climbed down from the wall and flashed him a knowing smile. He grinned back at her playfully and rolled his eyes as she was tugged forwards, dragging him with her; Rick was on the move again.

"Alright team," Rick called as he walked. "This one's simple. We just walk across it slowly and no one falls in."

Ryan settled his gaze onto the wooden rickety bridge once more and a feeling of dread began to seep through him. It would be fine if it weren't situated over a large puddle of mud; the bridge wasn't even that high, but he couldn't tell how deep the pool was. He turned to face Calleigh in an attempt to get her to change her mind, but one look at her eyes told him that it would be futile; that wicked glint was back. So instead, he grimaced and allowed the line to tug him forwards, closer towards it.

Once Rick was satsified that the group had caught up, he placed a foot on the bridge and took a tentative step. He turned to face them and smirked when nothing happened. "See? Perfectly safe." He looked at Ryan, reading his mind.

Ryan shot him a glare and resisted the urge to look at Calleigh. He felt her close the distance between them and she gave him a gentle, but firm, shove forwards; the group needed to be close in order for her plan to work. They silently began to bunch up as Stetler continued to move across the bridge, and waited for Calleigh's signal.

She smiled when she saw Rick had moved into the perfect position and quickly poked Ryan, triggering a chain reaction as the signal was relayed down the line. Once everyone except Stetler had been poked, they gripped the rope in front of them and held it tight, waiting for Rick to take his next step.

Rick smiled as he reached the middle section of the bridge and stretched his leg out in front of him, ready to move forwards, but released a yelp when he suddenly found himself yanked backwards. He wobbled on one leg as his balance failed him and held his breath when he realised that he was about to come into contact with the rather large, muddy pool.

Calleigh flashed a smile at Eric when she heard the _splash, _and watched as Rick was covered by the thick, sticky substance. But before she had a chance to say anything, she suddenly felt the line surge forwards...

Horatio jumped the distance between the bridge and the mud bank as he began to lose his own balance, sending Tripp crashing into the pool after Rick. Valera reached out to Natalia in an attempt to balance herself as she fell to the floor, and dragged both Natalia and Ryan down with her, whilst Calleigh found herself on her back, Eric on top of her. Before her brain had a chance to catch up, she suddenly became aware of the rope dragging her towards the muddy pool as the other members of the group began to thrash about. She looked back at Eric and locked her eyes with his, her brain struggling to process which was the most important problem that she was faced with. Eric was on top of her, all physical boundaries between them broken, and she was inching ever closer towards the mud...

* * *

To be continued...


	4. Personal Space is a Serious Issue

I've just thrown this chapter together, so I hope it still maintains the standards of the others.

Enjoy! x

* * *

**Personal Space is a Serious Issue...**

* * *

_She looked back at Eric and locked her eyes with his, her brain struggling to process which was the most important problem that she was faced with. Eric was on top of her, all physical boundaries between them broken, and she was inching ever closer towards the mud..._

* * *

Calleigh widened her eyes at him when she felt his hands slide between them and settle on her waist. His fingers began to probe, almost as if he was looking for something, and she froze, completely shocked at what was happening. She could hear the rest of the group in their panic and finally regained control of her voice. "Eric, what – " She stopped when she realised he'd found what he was looking for.

His hands slipped over the knot that tied her to the rope and he began to tug at it, glancing at the distance between the mud pool and their current position; there wasn't much time. He felt her hands reach for his own knot as she suddenly understood what he was trying to do.

"Duquesne!" a voice spat at her.

"A little busy right now, Rick!" she shot back. "Was it really necessary for you to have tied us so tightly?"

Just then, she heard another splash, followed by a scream, signaling that Valera had just made contact with the muddy pool and she grimaced, knowing that they were all going to hate her for this. She suddenly felt the rope loosen around her as Eric managed to tug the knot free and he placed his palms down on the bridge either side of her, lifting himself up a little so she could get better access. She was just about to give the knot the final pull that would release him when she felt them shoot forwards again as Natalia joined Valera and, in the movement, Eric's arms gave way, causing him to collapse back onto Calleigh, his mouth an inch away from hers. '_Oh,_ _this was way past uncomfortable.'_

Ryan's heart was beating overtime. The brown figures of Natalia and Valera were thrashing around so violently that he was in serious danger of wallowing in the mud himself. Stetler and Frank had managed to climb out and were now dragging their stained bodies up the bank. Ryan looked desperately over his shoulder at Calleigh, hoping she'd be able to save him, and his eyes widened at the sight; both she and Eric had frozen, eyes locked with one another, and the moment looked so intense that, had it not been for their current situation, Ryan would have been embarrassed to watch.

He jumped when something wet and sticky hit him on the face, and turned to see that Valera was jerking around so fervently that she had become a muddy tornado. And it was in that moment that Ryan knew he needed to do something; _'he was _not_ going into that pool.'_

Calleigh held her breath and managed to tear her eyes away from Eric, reaching back down for the knot that held him to her. She could have sworn that she heard him stifle a groan, but she bit her lip and ignored it, willing her fingers to work faster, nearly jumping when she heard Ryan's voice.

"Calleigh, I swear to God that if I end up in that – "

"Ryan, shut up! I'm trying to untie Eric!" she cut him off, a little too desperately. It was taking every ounce of her to concentrate.

"Oh, is that what you're doing?" Ryan muttered bitterly.

She felt her body tense and she let out a deep breath; now was not the time. "I'm not quite sure what you're insinuating, but if you don't want to end up in that mud pool then - " She squirmed under Eric as she attempted to give the knot a final tug. "Then start untying yourself from the rope!"

Ryan's brain suddenly kicked into action and he looked down and began to do as she'd suggested. Behind him, he heard movement that signaled that Eric and Calleigh had finally disengaged themselves from one another and his brain started to panic, knowing that he didn't have much time. He was just about to free himself when the rope surged forwards and he closed his eyes and held his breath, waiting for the inevitable splash that his body was about to make. He opened them when he heard nothing and glanced around wildly, suddenly feeling hands on his waist. And his gaze finally onto Calleigh, who was tugging away at his knot like crazy.

"Jesus, Ryan, how much do you weigh?" he heard a voice grunt behind him.

He looked over his shoulder and saw that Eric had jumped onto the rope and was holding onto it, preventing Ryan from his muddy fate. "It's all muscle!" he defended, as Calleigh gave a final tug and the knot came free.

She watched as Ryan hauled himself up and shot him a look that said, _'Don't even think about it,'_ when he moved to hug her. She'd just had to deal with a serious case of invasion of personal space and she was still reeling from it. In fact, the only way that it could have been worse was if it had been _Stetler_ on top of her, but she didn't even want to think about that. So instead, she flashed Ryan a reassuring smile as he told her, "Thank you."

"Duquesne! Get over here, now!"

Calleigh looked over to where the voice had come from and settled her gaze onto Rick, or at least the person who she thought was Rick, anyway. Some of the group were so covered in mud that it was hard to tell who was who; only she, Eric, Ryan and Horatio were still relatively clean. She bit her lip and forced him a polite smile as she made her way off the bridge and over to the mud bank.

"I suppose you're going to try and tell me that what you just did was some kind of sick display of teamwork?" Stetler screamed as she approached.

She opened her mouth to reply but was a little taken aback when another voice did it for her.

"Actually, Stetler, it was. Cal and Eric could have just let me fall in there but they didn't. They saved me," Ryan smiled at her genuinely.

"Oh, save me the dramatics, Wolfe. A little mud never hurt anyone!" Rick widened his eyes in disbelief.

"Then what's the problem?" Calleigh asked innocently, flashing a smile back at Ryan.

Rick sighed irritably and ran a hand through his hair, flakes of mud flying out of it as he did so. He grimaced and began to pace back and forth, trying to control himself, before he eventually decided that he wasn't about to give Calleigh the satisfaction of knowing how much she had annoyed him. He'd just find a way to get her back during the next exercise and, this time, he would succeed.

"Rick..." Horatio began, as he held his sunglasses up and inspected them for mud. "I think it would be best if we brought lunch forward so the team can get themselves cleaned up."

Stetler considered this for a moment. They hadn't finished the assault course but he knew that he needed to change, and one look at Valera and Natalia told him that there would be serious hell to pay if he didn't go with Horatio's suggestion. And as he watched Tripp sit himself down on the mud bank, still clearly in shock at what had just happened, Rick made up his mind. "Okay, let's get back on the mini bus. Make sure you take off your boots and sit on blankets, or something; we don't want mud getting on the seats."

"No, because that would be terrible," Valera muttered bitterly.

Rick ignored her and continued. "Our next destination has showering facilities so after you've got yourselves cleaned up, we'll combine lunch with the next exercise." He turned his back, not missing the glares that were shot in his direction, and began to walk towards the mini bus. He stopped when he heard a shout and glanced behind him to find that he'd managed to drag Horatio, Frank, Valera and Natalia with him.

"You might want to let us untie ourselves first, Rick!" Natalia spat as she picked herself up from the ground.

Whilst Rick waited for the group to free themselves, Valera shot a glare at Calleigh. She knew that the other woman hadn't meant for her to fall in after Stetler, but it didn't change the fact that she was _not_ happy. _'No,_ _Calleigh owed her big for this.'_

Calleigh flashed Valera her most sympathetic and apologetic smile, hoping that, for now, it would be enough. She turned her attention to Natalia and found herself reusing the smile. Tripp still seemed too shocked to feel anything towards her right now, and she couldn't help but feel a little grateful. Feeling Eric move behind her, she bit her lip, determined not to make eye contact; she'd just had more than enough contact with him to make her feel uncomfortable for days. And as she watched the now untangled group begin to make their way over to the mini bus, a small sigh escaped her before she followed suit, Eric close behind.

**_/EC/_**

Natalia exchanged a look with Ryan as the mini bus stopped outside what looked like a training ground. Aside from a medium-sized building, they had arrived at another field.

"At least there aren't any obstacles or torture traps," Ryan offered.

She arched an eyebrow back at him and gave him a look that said she wasn't so sure. Glancing down at her itinerary, she frowned, a little confused as to what they were doing here. But before she had a chance to ask, Stetler barked a list of instructions.

"Alright, everyone off. The showers are in that building there on a door to your right. Once you're all cleaned up and changed, meet me in the lobby and make it quick! We've still got a lot to get through. Any questions?"

"Uh, yeah," Valera began, "are the showers communal?"

Rick rolled his eyes and drew his arms across his chest. "Don't worry, I'm not going to look."

Valera widened her eyes and stiffened. "Rick, I am not getting into a shower with you present! I'm not getting into a shower with anyone present!"

The group chorused their agreement and Rick sighed irritably. "Fine, we'll take turns. Everyone gets five minutes. I'll go in first."

Valera's mouth hung open in disbelief as he strolled away, and she exchanged a look with Natalia. She suddenly wasn't angry with Calleigh anymore; Stetler deserved everything he got, no matter what the cost.

**_/EC/_**

As Calleigh sat herself down in one of the armchairs in the lobby, she breathed a sigh of relief when it was Ryan who sat next to her; she didn't want to deal with Eric right now. She flashed him a smile and glanced over to where Horatio was stood, hands on hips and staring out of the window, and was a little surprised when Natalia and Valera stood in front of her and pulled her up, tugging her over to the ladies. Once they were inside, the two women turned to face her.

"What's our next move?" Valera asked.

Calleigh stared back at them blankly, not quite understanding.

"How are we going to get Stetler during the next activity?" Natalia explained.

Calleigh laughed and shook her head. "I'm surprised you want to after what happened last time." She gestured to their mud stained bodies.

"That was just a slight... _inconvenience._ Besides, it was Stetler's fault for tying us all together, anyway," Valera replied, a little psychotically.

"Okay," Calleigh began, both relieved and taken aback at Valera's sudden u-turn, "well what is the next activity? I haven't looked."

Natalia flashed her a smile and handed her the itinerary. She and Valera watched as Calleigh studied it and waited patiently for a plan to form; _'Stetler wouldn't know what had hit him.'_

Eventually, Calleigh looked back up at them and flashed a wicked smile, her eyes dancing dangerously. "Here's what we're going to do..."

* * *

Ooh, I've left you with another cliffhanger. Try not to hate me.

I'm not going to be able to update for a couple of days as I'm flying out to New Zealand later, (not even sure how I managed to find the time to write this between packing and losing things) but I'll see what I can do when I arrive. I'll have some time to kill on the plane, anyway.


	5. All it Needs is that Extra Something

Right, I've landed here in NZ and the jet lag is a killer. (It's about 8.06 **am** out here when it's 9.06 **pm** back home!)

Anyway, I wrote this on the plane so here you are.

Enjoy! x

* * *

**All it Needs is that Extra Something...**

* * *

Rick was getting impatient. He glanced down at his watch and emitted a loud sigh; '_Valera must have been in the shower for at least ten minutes now.'_ The rest of the group were all seated in the lobby, waiting for her, and Rick couldn't help but notice the distance that Calleigh had put between herself and Eric. He continued to watch her carefully, a little curious as to what was going on, and the corners of his mouth turned up when he realised how he could get her back for everything that she'd done to him...

He looked down at his watch again and with another sigh, he stood up and headed over to the door marked _showers_. "Valera! We're all waiting for you! This is not some kind of hygiene test, now hurry up!" he shouted against the wood, hearing her utter several obscenities before the water stopped and with a satisfied smile, he headed back over to his seat.

_**/EC/**_

A good ten minutes afterwards, and one clean and slightly agitated Valera later – "Never rush a woman in a shower, Rick!" – the group assembled in front of a set of double doors, ready for their next activity.

Rick surveyed them and his gaze settled onto Ryan; the man looked puzzled. "Out with it, Wolfe," he commanded.

"Well, when you said 'combine the next activity with lunch,' what did you mean?"

"Exactly that, Wolfe." Rick smirked and the team watched as he pushed open the doors to reveal a huge kitchen. "We're cooking lunch. I will split us up into pairs and each pair will be given a recipe to follow and ingredients to use. Once the dishes have been made, I shall judge them," Stetler explained, waiting for Ryan's inevitable question.

"And this teaches us what exactly?"

"I am getting sick of having to explain myself to you, but if you must know, cooking tests patience and the ability to follow instructions. Any other questions?"

"Yeah," Tripp piped up. "What does the winning pair get?"

"The satisfaction that their dish was the best," Rick replied simply.

The group narrowed their eyes at him but he ignored their less-than-enthusiastic response and strolled into the kitchen, motioning for them to follow him.

Valera exchanged a look with Calleigh; she was a little unsure as to how their plan was going to work now that they were cooking their own lunch and Calleigh looked equally confused. Before either of them had a chance to ponder the thought, however, Rick spoke again.

"Right, Tripp you're with me, Valera you're with Horatio, Ryan you're with Natalia and Eric you're with Calleigh," he smirked at the last pairing and locked his eyes with Calleigh. "We wouldn't want to split the dream team up now, would we?" he continued, his smirk growing.

Calleigh inhaled a deep breath and forced a tight smile. She knew what had happened between her and Eric hadn't been Eric's fault, but she couldn't shake how uncomfortable she now felt around him; whilst it was safe to look and flirt from afar, being in such an intimate position – impending mud dunking aside – was decidedly dangerous. Eric was her friend, the person she trusted with every fiber of her being and she didn't want to do anything that might jeopardise that. Not to mention the fact that a romance between them would be highly unprofessional. She then rolled her eyes at how stupid she sounded; so far, everything she'd done for the entire day had been unprofessional. Sighing heavily, she ran a hand through her hair; _'why was everything so complicated?'_

Eric glared at Stetler as he handed him a recipe sheet and glanced down at it. He rolled his eyes and looked back at him. "Way to be creative, Rick."

"We're on a tight schedule, Delko," Stetler barked back. "Stir-fry dishes are quick to make."

Eric shook his head and headed over to the counter marked, _Noodles with Prawns and Green Peppers._ He watched as Calleigh slowly made her way over to him and he frowned. Ever since the incident on the bridge, she had been going out of her way to avoid him. He knew he shouldn't be surprised, however' '_this was Calleigh, after all.'_ He just wished that she didn't have to be so stubborn or so defensive. A sigh escaped his mouth when she finally came to stand next to him, and he attempted to catch her eye; he wasn't sure whether to broach the subject or not but just when he opened his mouth to speak, she beat him to it.

"I never thanked you," she murmured quietly.

Eric stared back at her blankly.

"For, uh, untying me on the bridge..." she trailed off.

He smiled and nodded. "Likewise."

Calleigh flashed him a shy smile and peered down at the recipe sheet, trying to see what the first step was. She had decided that she was just overreacting; she knew that Eric respected her boundaries, and it was unfair to avoid him purely because of an accident. Besides, she didn't want to give Stetler the satisfaction of knowing that, for a moment, he had actually got to her.

Eric smiled back at her and then began to open cupboards, looking for a wok. After wrestling one away from Ryan, he turned back and placed it on the hob. Calleigh reached for the oil and poured about a tablespoon into it whilst he reached for the garlic and began to crush it. He was just about to move onto the second clove when he suddenly caught her about to add the green pepper.

"Whoa! We've got to add the garlic first." He pointed to the recipe sheet and gently removed the pepper covered chopping board from her hands.

"Oh, Eric, don't be so silly. It's a stir-fry! You just add everything and it's done." She attempted to grab the board back off him.

He moved it out of her reach and shook his head. "You might do it that way, but I cook it properly," he argued.

"What? Eric this is just Stetler. We're not cooking for anyone important."

"Calleigh, if you simply bung everything in together, you don't get all of the flavours."

She raised her eyebrows at him and drew her arms across her chest. "Says who?"

Eric flashed her a playful smile and deposited the now thoroughly crushed garlic into the wok. "My ma'."

She laughed at that and reached for the red chilli. "Okay, so am I allowed to add this yet or not?"

"Make sure it's deseeded first," he commanded.

She flashed him a smile and did as she was told, a little impressed at his culinary skills; '_a man who could cook was _never_ a bad thing.'_

_**/EC/**_

Valera glanced over at Ryan and Natalia's wok and arched an eyebrow. "What are you two cooking?" She gestured to the green, lumpy liquid that was currently simmering away.

"Lemon chicken with spinach," Ryan explained.

Valera grimaced.

"Hey, you're not the one who has to eat it," Natalia responded, before she turned to Ryan. "Are you sure it's supposed to look like that?"

He shot her a glare and glanced down at the recipe sheet. "Well, we've followed this exactly so yes."

"And we were supposed to have added that much spinach?"

"Yes!" he replied, his voice a little hysterical. He then glanced down at the recipe sheet again and his eyes widened.

"What?" Natalia eyed him curiously.

He looked back at her sheepishly and shrugged. "Maybe we added too much spinach."

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh watched as Eric removed the garlic, chili, pepper and spring onions from the wok and placed them onto a plate. He then reached for the bottle of fish sauce and glanced over at Horatio.

"Hey, H, can we borrow some of that cornflour?"

"Delko!" Rick cut in. "You're supposed to be following the recipe!"

Eric rolled his eyes and drew his arms across his chest. "I am, Stetler, but this will improve it."

Rick eyed him curiously before switching his gaze to Calleigh; she looked as baffled as he did and he breathed a sigh of relief, feeling safe with the knowledge that this was not one of her plans to hurt or humiliate him. He nodded for Horatio to pass Eric the cornflour and turned back to his own dish, missing the look that Valera exchanged with a certain Ballistics expert.

Calleigh stifled her urge to laugh and broke eye contact; Eric had inadvertently distracted Stetler, allowing Valera to add a little something extra to Rick's wok. Another thought suddenly crept into her mind and Calleigh bit her lip; '_she just hoped that they would be able to warn Frank before he ate it, too.'_

"Can you get the noodles out of the packet? We're going to add them in a minute," Eric asked her. She flashed him a smile and rolled her eyes. "What?" He returned the smile.

"Cook often, do you?" she teased.

"Yes, actually. When I left home it was one of the things that mom made sure I could do before I went."

"Really? Did she teach you how to iron and clean as well?" she quipped.

"Funny," he shot back. "Now hurry up and sort the noodles out. I'm just about ready for them."

She gave him an amused look and with a final laugh, she did as she was told.

_**/EC/**_

Settler glanced at his watch as he reached for the sesame seeds and added them into his wok. Next to him, Tripp was chopping an orange pepper. "Alright, another ten minutes and I want everyone ready to serve. Set aside a small plate for me so I can taste your dishes," Rick called out to the group.

He glanced over at Eric and Calleigh and eyed them suspiciously, trying to deduce as to whether he had anything to worry about. His decision to pair them together hadn't had quite the effect that he hoped it would. In fact, it actually seemed to have fixed whatever little problem they'd had. Rick sighed and made a mental note to be extra careful when tasting their dish, before he eventually went back to concentrating on his own, once again missing the look that Valera exchanged with Calleigh.

Valera stifled her squeal of excitement and set about adding the last of the ingredients to her wok; in Rick's distraction, she'd been able to add a second dose to his dish.

_**/EC/**_

Eric grinned at Calleigh as he transferred the contents of their wok into a serving bowl. He was just about to start serving when Rick stopped him. "Not so fast, Delko. I'm going to do that. Can't be too careful these days," he added, shooting a glare at Calleigh in the process.

Calleigh flashed him her sweetest smile and handed him a plate. "Be my guest, Rick."

He took it from her and served himself a small sample of their dish. "Okay everyone, have your dishes ready. I'm going to start trying them," he called to the rest of the group. He then reached for a fork and was about to tuck into Calleigh and Eric's creation when he hesitated, glancing up and surveying them both carefully.

"Something wrong?" Calleigh asked innocently.

"How about you try it first?" Rick raised his eyebrows.

Calleigh exchanged a look with Eric and shrugged. They both reached for a fork and took a bite.

Rick watched as they did so and, apparently satisfied that he had nothing to worry about, he followed suit. "Alright," he began after several chews, "not bad." He didn't want to give them the satisfaction of telling them that it was actually pretty damn good.

Eric rolled his eyes and served up two portions, receiving a smile from Calleigh when he handed her a plate and, together, they watched as Stetler moved onto Ryan and Natalia's dish.

Rick grimaced when he saw it. "You know what, Wolfe, just throw it away. It looks disgusting."

Ryan widened his eyes and was about to protest when Natalia beat him to it. "_You _told us to make this, Rick. The least you can do is try it." She handed him a fork, her eyes flashing dangerously.

Rick sighed and took it from her; he knew that she wasn't going to let it drop, and he'd had more than enough hassle for today. So gingerly, he took a bite and forced it down his throat. He then reached for a glass of water and downed it in one. "Seriously, throw it away," he commanded as he poured himself another glass, trying not to gag in the process.

Ryan looked down at the green lumps in his serving bowl and after a short period of consideration, decided that Rick was probably right. He looked up when Calleigh pushed two plates over to him. "Don't worry, we made plenty." He flashed her a smile and handed one to Natalia.

Once Rick was satisfied that he could no longer taste Ryan and Natalia's dish, he moved onto Valera and Horatio's. They had made 'Pad Thai noodles' and as far as Rick could tell, it looked relatively normal. He reached for a fork and quickly took a bite. "Satisfactory," he eventually decided.

It took every ounce of Valera's will power not to hit him.

Rick was just about to reach for his own dish when Ryan spoke. "You know, I don't think it's very fair that you're the judge when you're including your own food in the competition."

Valera exchanged a look with Natalia, who in turn elbowed Ryan in the ribs. "Shut up! Just let him taste it," she hissed, glancing over at Stetler in the hope that he had missed the exchange, and breathed a sigh of relief when she realised that he had.

Rick reached for a fork and turned to face Ryan. "I am in charge here, Wolfe. Deal with it."

Ryan shot him a glare and rubbed his side. He eyed Natalia curiously, not quite sure what was going on, but knowing that he wanted to keep out of it. And so instead, he focused his attention on Stetler as he took a bite of his 'Hot Sesame Beef.'

Valera held her breath and waited for the impending eruption. She suddenly caught sight of Tripp reaching for a fork and widened her eyes at him, trying to tell him not to take a bite. She winced when the Texan slipped the fork into his mouth and began to chew; _'Oh, God.'_

Rick had just taken a second bite when it hit him; his mouth suddenly felt like it was on fire. He could feel himself begin to sweat and he turned to face Calleigh, his eyes spitting venom at her. "What-did-you-do?" he panted.

Calleigh bit her lip and tried to stifle her laughter. Rick was now so red that she almost expected steam to start pouring out of ears any moment. "Nothing," she eventually managed, feigning innocence. "I've been over here the whole time."

Rick reached for a glass of water and began to down it, the inside of his mouth stinging when it came into contact with the cool liquid. He could feel his eyes start to water and he glared at the rest of the group.

Whilst Valera was enjoying this, she couldn't help but feel a little sorry for Frank; he was just as red as Rick and he was hopping around doing what she could only describe as some sort of jig.

"Who did this?" Stetler barked between gulps.

The group remained silent until Calleigh spoke. "Well, you did make '_Hot_ Sesame Beef' Rick," she shrugged innocently, trying not to wince on behalf of Frank.

Rick stared back at her for a moment before he looked away and brought his hands to his head, his anger and bodily inferno temporarily rendering him speechless. Valera took the opportunity to move the red chili seeds that she had added to his wok out of sight.

Calleigh felt Eric poke her and she turned to look at him. He raised his eyebrows at her, silently asking if she'd had anything to do with Rick and Frank's current rise in body temperature and she bit back her smile. "It's a good thing you told me to deseed that chili," she whispered.

Eric stifled his own desire to laugh and turned to watch as Frank began to dab himself with a wet cloth.

"Everyone out! Just take your lunch and go!" Rick suddenly shouted, turning even redder. "I'll meet you in the lobby in twenty minutes for our next activity."

"Uh, would now be a bad time to ask who won?" Ryan asked. One look at Rick's face told him he needed to leave, and quickly.

Calleigh shot Tripp a sympathetic look and turned to follow the rest of the group out of the kitchen, leaving Frank and Rick to compose themselves.

_**/EC/**_

"Remind me never to get on your bad side," Eric muttered to Calleigh as they settled themselves down in the lobby.

She flashed him a dangerous smile and laughed. "I could hardly let those chili seeds go to waste now, could I?" she replied with mock sincerity. "Seriously, though, this is really good. What else can you cook?" she asked him as she took a bite from her plate.

"Now that would be telling," Eric grinned and wiggled his eyebrows playfully.

She matched his smile and was about to reply when Valera cut in. "Hey, does anyone know what the next activity is?"

Ryan reached for his itinerary and studied it for a moment. He slowly raised his head back up as a look of horror crept across his features. He just hoped that he wasn't going to be partnered with one of the other men for this next one; '_even Calleigh would be better than that.'_

* * *

I guess ending on a cliffhanger has become part of my format.

I'll be off now, my boyfriend is about to teach me how to surf so providing I don't break anything or get swept away by a wave, I'll update soon. I'm not going to be in NZ for too long anyway; I'm only here for a friend's birthday and then I'm jetting back home.


	6. Vertical Displays of a Horizontal Desire

I am currently v. close to freak-out mode. I'm flying home tomorrow and as soon as I land have to shoot down the M25, (those of you who live in the UK/have experienced it will know what a joke of a road system it is) to work and then shoot back up it later in the evening to watch a play in London. So instead of freaking out, I thought I would put my restless energy to good use and write this.

Enjoy! x

* * *

**Vertical Displays of a Horizontal Desire...**

* * *

_Ryan reached for his itinerary and studied it for a moment. He slowly raised his head back up as a look of horror crept across his features. He just hoped that he wasn't going to be partnered with one of the other men for this next one; '__even Calleigh would be better than that.'_

* * *

Valera eyed Ryan carefully and the longer he took to answer her question, the more worried she became. "Ryan?" she prompted.

His head snapped up and he opened his mouth to answer, but before he could utter a word, the double doors to the kitchen swung open with a _bang _and a slightly more normal coloured Rick stormed through them. He shot the group a glare as he flung himself down into an armchair and he began to massage his temples. He had been trying to work out what exactly Calleigh had done to his lunch and the not knowing was driving him insane; _'she hadn't been near his wok the entire time!' _He released a growl of frustration and ran his hands through his hair, allowing them to settle on the back of his head whilst he closed his eyes.

Calleigh exchanged a knowing look with Valera and attempted to suppress the smile that tugged at her mouth. "Is everything okay, Rick?" she asked sweetly, watching as he slowly opened his eyes, and she bit back her smile when he shot her a glare.

"Do not patronize me, Duquesne," he began tightly. "I know that you had something to do with what just happened. I'm just not sure how."

"Oh, Rick, don't be so ridiculous. It's entirely possible that you or Frank simply added a little too much chili. Besides, I never left Eric's side the entire time we were in there," she replied, feigning innocence.

Rick inhaled and exhaled deeply, trying to stay calm, and out the corner of his eye he caught sight of Tripp leaving the kitchen. He studied him carefully, trying to work out if the man had maybe added more chili than was needed before he closed his eyes again and shook his head; his gut told him that Calleigh had done something to his lunch, but his head told him that it was impossible.

Tripp settled himself down into an armchair and glanced over at Calleigh; after being on the receiving end of two of her pranks, he was feeling extremely sorry for himself; _'she owed him big for this.' _She seemed to sense what he was thinking and offered him her most sincere smile, silently apologising. He gave her a small nod in response, deciding that he'd take her aside later and demand that she buy him a drink; '_or two_.' He then reached for the itinerary and groaned when he saw the next item on the agenda.

"Rick…" Horatio suddenly began, "Rick, now you and Frank have had a moment to cool off - "

"If that was supposed to be funny Hora – "

"No, there was no pun intended. I was just about to suggest that we move onto the next activity."

Rick sighed and glanced around the room. The group had pretty much finished their lunch now and Calleigh was stacking up the plates. He watched as she stood up to take them back into the kitchen before he turned back to Horatio. "Fine, everyone get in there and clean up. In five minutes we begin again," he eventually replied.

"Uh, won't we get indigestion?" Ryan piped up.

Rick shot him a glare and shook his head in disbelief. "Just do it, Wolfe."

He went back to massaging his temples as the group made their way to the kitchen and stopped when he caught sight of Frank; he hadn't moved. "Tripp! Get in there!" he barked.

Frank's mouth hung open and he widened his eyes. "Hey, I was a victim too Stetler!" he growled.

"I won't ask again," Rick replied tightly. He watched as Frank uttered several obscenities and then with a loud grunt, the man made his way over to the double doors, shooting a glare over his shoulder in the process.

Tripp settled his gaze onto Calleigh once he entered the kitchen and he sighed; _'he wanted to stay as far away as possible from both her and Stetler.'_

**_/EC/_**

Once the group had cleaned up, they met Rick outside another set of double doors. Ryan caught Frank's eye and the man raised his eyebrows in response; they were both dreading what was behind them. Valera noticed the exchange and her curiosity peaked. Ryan still hadn't answered her question and she'd lost her own itinerary somewhere in the mud.

"So, what's behind door number two then, Stetler?" she asked dramatically.

Rick shot her a weary look and pushed the doors open to reveal a large hall, and he gestured for the team to follow him. A single figure was sitting in the middle of the floor, waiting patiently for them. "This is Fabian Ballas. He's a Latin American dance champion and he's kindly come along today to teach us a few things." Rick paused and glanced at Ryan, waiting for the inevitable question that would kick off the oh-so-familiar routine and, sure enough, it came.

"And dancing teaches us?"

Rick sighed and opened his mouth to speak but Fabian beat him to it. "Dance is about trust between you and your partner. It's about taking risks, letting yourself go."

Ryan eyed the man carefully. His words were coloured by a strong Spanish accent and it was clear that he was one of those 'eccentric types.' Ryan glanced over at Valera and rolled his eyes; she had inched closer to their dance teacher and was flirting shamelessly.

"I've always loved men who can dance," he heard her say.

"It's been barely five seconds," Natalia whispered next to him. Before Ryan could reply, however, Fabian spoke again.

"Now, we shall begin with a little ice breaker and then I am going to split you into pairs. We will - "

"Actually, Fabian," Rick cut in, "I'll do that. You see - "

"This is my lesson and I am in charge!" Fabian roared, clearly insulted that Rick not only had the audacity to interrupt him, but to also try and take charge. "I say who goes with who and what is what!"

"So does this mean we don't get to dance with you?" Valera piped up.

Fabian ignored her and continued. "I'd like you all to stand in a line and as I walk down it, I want you to introduce yourselves." The group did as they were told and once Fabian was satisfied that he had learnt their names, he spoke again. "Okay, Ryan and Valera you are a pair, Eric and Calleigh you are a pair - "

"Uh, Fabian, if I may, I don't think..." Rick trailed off when the man shot daggers at him.

"Frank you are with Natalia and Rick, you are with Horatio."

Rick widened his eyes and his mouth hung open. "You can't be serious!"

Fabian ignored him, however, and continued. "We shall be dancing the rumba; a dance that tells the story of love and eroticism between a man and a woman, a vertical display of a horizontal desire. It is considered the most sensual of the Latin dances."

Rick glanced over at Horatio and he grimaced; getting sensual with Horatio was not exactly his idea of fun. He then moved his gaze to Calleigh and he couldn't help but notice that she had tensed up considerably.

Calleigh was trying her hardest not to look at Eric; '_this dance was going to be torture!'_ The only consolation was that Rick had to dance it with Horatio. She ran a hand through her hair and listened as Fabian began again.

"In this dance, the emphasis is on the body. I want to see a lot of hip rolling and a lot of shapes."

Calleigh bit her lip and tried to shake the images of making any sort of shapes with Eric out of her mind. She felt his hand brush against her arm as he drew his arms across his chest and she jumped at the contact.

He turned to face her and he was about to speak when he suddenly found himself being tugged forwards by Fabian.

"Calleigh, you come too. I'm going to use you both as an example."

Eric watched as Calleigh slowly made her way over to him and he raised his eyebrows, trying to let her know that he wasn't going to take advantage of the situation. Besides, he seriously doubted that he'd be able to; part of him was a little terrified about dancing the rumba with her and his fear kicked in with renewed force when Fabian reached for his left hand and placed it over Calleigh's right. She broke eye contact to look at Fabian and Eric stifled a sigh, knowing that this activity was going to be extremely uncomfortable; _'why did she have to be so stubborn?'_

"Now everyone, I need you to watch carefully. You are going to recreate this move in a moment," Eric heard Fabian say as the man walked him forwards into a position to the side of Calleigh.

She caught his eye and flashed him a shy smile before she looked down at where their hands were still joined. He felt her grip slacken a little so he tightened his. She raised her eyes back to his again and swallowed.

"Okay, both of you need to take three steps forwards. Eric, make sure you stay just a little behind Calleigh and when you both walk, you must walk on the balls of your feet only. I don't want to see any heel leads!"

Eric raised his eyebrows at Calleigh and together, they did as Fabian asked.

"Good! Now after the third step, Calleigh you're going to move directly in front of Eric and Eric you are going to spin her once."

She took a deep breath and allowed Eric to pull her in close as he spun her. She breathed a sigh of relief as she came out of the spin and then turned to face Fabian, waiting for the next set of instructions.

"Calleigh, when you come out of the spin I want you to face Eric, and don't either of you let go of your hands." He paused to position her properly and then manipulated Eric's body to face hers, too. "Calleigh, you're going to take two steps backwards as Eric takes two forwards. I then want you to turn around and, Eric, you're going pull her back to you. You will then take three steps backwards as Calleigh takes three forwards."

Eric exchanged another shy smile with Calleigh and they did as they were told, both a little unsure where to look.

"Stop, stop, stop!" Fabian cried. "This is a dance of desire, love, _chemistry_! You need to look into each other's eyes and mean it! Eric, you need to believe that you are going to have her and Calleigh you need to tease him, give him a little but then withdraw. Once he's pulled you back, I want you to place a hand on his chest and push him backwards while you move forwards, okay?"

Calleigh stifled her urge to drop Eric's hand there and then and run for the door. but instead, she allowed Eric to tighten his grip and she locked her eyes with his, willing herself to let go. He held her gaze and he began to move with her, _forwards-forwards-forwards-across-spin-backwards-backwards-turn-tug-forwards…_

She could feel his heart beating hard against his chest as she settled her palm there and she was pretty sure her own heart was pumping overtime as she took the final two steps forwards. Their eye contact remained until, with an effort, she dragged her eyes away as Fabian began to speak once more.

"Excellent! Now for the final bit before I get you all to try," he said, glancing at the rest of the group. "Eric, after you've taken your three steps backwards, I want you to pull Calleigh in close with the hand that is joined in hers. Your other hand is going to start in her hair and move to her shoulder. Calleigh, your other hand will move to his waist. I want you close enough so your foreheads are touching. You will then roll your hips three times like this," He moved to demonstrate.

Calleigh bit her lip and took a moment to halt her internal squirm. She hated that she was so uncomfortable about being so intimate with Eric, but she couldn't help but be terrified. She was dancing a dance of love with the man that she knew she could - no, did - love and she was trying her hardest not to panic. It also didn't help that they were in a room surrounded by their colleagues _and_ Stetler...

She felt Eric reach for her hand and she allowed him to take it, deciding that she wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible. They started from the beginning and when Calleigh's palm moved to his chest she found that his heart was beating even faster than before, and the thought had barely entered her mind when he pulled her towards him. It took all of her concentration to not look at his hand as it moved down her hair and settled on her shoulder and she suddenly became aware that her own hand had moved to his waist, just as Fabian had instructed. Eric leaned his forehead against hers and her breath caught in her throat as she realised how close her body was to his. She watched as he swallowed and then together they completed the choreography with three hip rolls.

He continued to hold her gaze even though they'd finished and as hard as she tried, she couldn't bring herself to pull away from him, her body held to his by the intense heat she could feel between them.

"Perfect!" she heard Fabian cry. "Now I want everyone to copy that!" He gestured for the rest of the group to take up their positions and began to walk around the room barking orders at them.

Calleigh barely heard him, though; she was still wrapped in Eric's arms, struggling to regain control over herself. She closed her eyes and took a couple of breaths before she opened them again and slowly, she tugged herself free of his embrace. He stared back at her for a moment, clearly as affected by the choreography as she was and he scratched the back of his neck nervously.

"Cal, I - " he was cut off by Fabian.

"Quit talking and keep at it!" he barked.

Eric sighed as Fabian pushed them together again and he swallowed when her eyes found his once more...

**_/EC/_**

Ryan sighed; everytime Valera was supposed to walk in front of him, she walked towards the right, glancing at Fabian as she did so. He rolled his eyes as she did it a fifth time and he released a cry of frustration. "Valera! Would you quit making eyes at Lothario over there and take this seriously, please!"

She looked back at him and widened her eyes. "Ryan, I am not making eyes at - "

"No, no, no!" Fabian cut in. "You're moving all wrong! Here, let me show you." He paused to take Valera's hand. She shot Ryan a triumphant look and turned back to Fabian. "You step with the balls of your feet, like you are gliding. Think like a swan, Maxine, act like a swan."

Ryan rolled his eyes again as Valera laughed, and he glanced over at Natalia and Frank; the latter was having trouble moving in time with her and he kept stepping on her feet.

"Tripp! I actually want to be able to walk after this!" she hissed as he did it again.

Ryan laughed and turned his attention back to Valera and Fabian. She was still wrapped in his arms and her free hand had begun to wander.

"So where am I supposed to place this hand?" she asked, feigning innocence as she slid it down his chest.

Ryan sighed and looked away; _'oh please!'_

**_/EC/_**

Stetler had his eyes closed; he'd found that if he did that, then having Horatio in his arms was just bearable. He moved to spin him and then frowned when his arm got twisted.

"Horatio! I thought we'd agreed that you were the woman!" he snapped, his eyes flying open.

"No, Rick," Horatio paused as he let go of Stetler's hand. "We'd agreed to take it in turns."

Rick's eyes narrowed and he rubbed his eyes, desperately wanting this activity to be over. He glanced at his watch and grimaced when he realised that there was still another fifteen minutes left. "Alright," he finally replied. "Let's get this over with."

**_/EC/_**

Once Fabian had managed to wrangle himself away from Valera's grasp, he clapped his hands for the group's attention. He then moved over to Eric and Calleigh once more. "Okay, I'm going to teach you a few more steps. Please can you adopt the end position that I've just taught you?" he asked them.

Eric smiled and pulled Calleigh in close to him, once again resting his forehead on hers and moving his free hand to her shoulder as hers settled on his waist. It felt so natural now, almost fun, and he wiggled his eyebrows at her playfully while they waited for Fabian's next set of instructions.

"Good. Now, Eric, I want you to move both of your hands to the small of Calleigh's back to support her as she leans back."

Eric did as Fabian asked, not missing the slight shiver from Calleigh as his hands moved to their new position, and he then supported her as her torso leaned backwards.

"Part your legs a little Eric. Calleigh, you keep your legs between his. Yes, like that. Now, Eric, move her body from the left to the right and then bring her back up again."

Calleigh flashed Eric a smile when his head came back into view and held his gaze as Fabian continued.

"Okay, good. Now, Calleigh, you're going to spin away but as you do so, Eric is going to reach for your left hand with his right and spin you back into him. You'll then both spin to the right two times and then, Calleigh, you're going to wrap your right leg around Eric's waist for a third spin."

Calleigh's eyes suddenly snapped away from Eric's when her brain caught up with what Fabian had just said; _'wrap your leg around Eric...'_ She swallowed and let go of Eric's hand and was about to say something when she heard Horatio mutter something to Rick:

"Would you prefer to be the man or the woman for this bit?"

She met Eric's gaze again and flashed him a smile, suddenly grateful that he was her dance partner. He returned the smile and took her hand once more to lead her back into the dance. She still wasn't comfortable with this section of the routine, but she allowed herself to go with it, a part of her actually enjoying the excuse she had to be this close to Eric. She found that if she kept telling herself that it was for the purposes of the exercise, then some of her inhibtions melted away. He spun her expertly and her leg slipped around his waist, just as Fabian had instructed, and she was about to lower it when Fabian stopped her.

"Wait, hold that position. Eric, I need you to part your legs and support Calleigh's back again. Calleigh, your other leg is going to slide between Eric's as he lowers you to the ground. He'll then pull you back up again and you'll end with your foreheads touching once more."

Calleigh shot Eric a warning look as he begun to lower her but he ignored it, concentrating solely on not dropping her as his brain struggled to come to terms with what was happening; '_Calleigh Duquesne was between his legs.' _Once he'd lowered her as far as he could, he slid her back up and pulled her close, breathing heavily as their foreheads touched. She bit her lip and he couldn't help but notice that she was breathing just as hard as he was.

Ryan watched his two colleagues carefully, suddenly a little uncomfortable at what he was witnessing. He glanced over at the rest of the group and noticed that everyone else, save from Fabian, seemed embarrassed, too.

"Beautiful!" Fabian cried. "You move wonderfully together!"

Calleigh took a step backwards from Eric and attempted to control her breathing; the idea of moving _'wonderfully'_ with Eric was decidedly dangerous. She knew he was thinking it too and she looked away, trying hard to compose herself.

"Okay everyone! Take your partners and practice the final stage of the routine," she heard Fabian call.

Before she had a chance to think about anything more, Eric took her into his arms again and her brain switched off, suddenly unable to come up with a coherent thought as his body led her into each step.

**_/EC/_**

Ryan growled his frustration as Valera deliberately spun away from him in front of Fabian.

"Could you help me?" she called out to him. "I can't get the steps right." She flashed him a smile as he took her into his arms and she executed the routine perfectly, save from her wandering hands.

"Maxine, your hand does not belong there," Fabian laughed and gently removed her hand from his bottom.

Ryan rolled his eyes and glanced over at Horatio and Stetler and, for a moment, he actually wished that he had been paired with one of them. He changed his mind quickly, however, as Horatio's leg slipped round Stetler's waist and Ryan shuddered; _'that's just wrong on so many levels.'_

**_/EC/_**

Rick grimaced and clenched his teeth as Horatio's leg slid around his waist; '_he had never been so uncomfortable in his entire life.' _He grimaced again as he lowered Horatio between his legs, dropping him when the man brushed against his groin. "Horatio, what the hell - "

"Rick..." Horatio cut him off, "you didn't part your legs enough."

Stetler widened his eyes and took a step backwards; '_this was just too surreal.'_

"I've changed my mind, I want to be the woman."

Horatio sighed as he got to his feet and placed his hands on his hips. "I..." he began, "I am not letting you wrap your leg around my waist."

Stetler groaned and looked down at his watch, breathing a sigh of relief when he realised that there were only five minutes left.

**_/EC/_**

Calleigh's breath caught in her throat as Eric leaned his forehead against hers for what felt like the millionth time; only this time, she closed her eyes. She could feel his hands on her waist, gently pulling her closer to him and she shivered as he breathed into her hair. She felt his eyes on her and her own fluttered open as she struggled to come to terms with what was happening; _'this wasn't part of the routine, was it?'_

"Cal," she heard him whisper.

She raised her eyebrows as his mouth came closer, suddenly oblivious to where they were and who they were with; all she knew was that she was scarily close to Eric and it seemed like he was about to kiss her. And as the distance between them closed further, shrinking until all that was left was a fraction between their lips, her eyes never left his...

* * *

I'm sure you guys expect the cliffhanger by now.

Anyway, I'll try to update soon but I'm going to be very busy over the next week or so.

Reviews very much appreciated.


	7. When Champions Meet

Okay, after leaving you with such a mean cliffhanger I realised that I needed to update fast. You can thank the jet lag for this because I can't sleep.

I actually had no idea what I wanted the outcome of that cliffhanger to be and then I read the reviews you guys left, (thank you by the way) and got torn between what I wanted to do. So, I considered four possible outcomes and chose this one...

Enjoy! x

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**When Champions Meet...**

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_She raised her eyebrows as his mouth came closer, suddenly oblivious to where they were and who they were with; all she knew was that she was scarily close to Eric and it seemed like he was about to kiss her. And as the distance between them closed further, shrinking until all that was left was a fraction between their lips, her eyes never left his...  
_

* * *

Ryan drew his arms across his chest and sighed irritably as he watched Fabian run through the dance steps with Valera _again. _Whilst he wasn't particularly a fan of dancing, the fact that Valera obviously had no interest in being his partner was quite frankly a little insulting; Fabian was quite possibly the gayest straight man he'd ever met -providing he actually was straight of course.

"So, my leg goes here?" he heard Valera ask as she slipped her leg around Fabian's waist, low enough that her foot came to rest on his bottom.

Ryan rolled his eyes and shook his head in disbelief.

"Am I gripping you tight enough?" he heard her continue.

"Any tighter, Valera and you two are going to need a room," Ryan muttered bitterly.

He was met with a glare before she turned back to Fabian and smiled innocently up at him. "Is Mrs. Ballas a dancer too?"

Fabian grinned shyly back at her and shook his head as he lowered her between his legs. "I am not married, Maxine."

"Oh," Valera replied as he lifted her back up. "Good."

Ryan widened his eyes, a little shocked at how forward Valera was being. He looked away and his eyes widened further when he caught sight of two people across the room; _'what the?'_

**_/EC/_**

Stetler closed his eyes as he lowered Horatio between his legs and his arms tensed with the weight. He let out a throaty groan, not out of pleasure but out of pain, and he dropped Horatio almost as soon as the noise had left his mouth; '_he had just groaned while Horatio was between his legs.'_ Before he had time to ponder it further, however, he suddenly found himself stumbling over as Horatio squirmed in pain on the floor, and he reached out his hands to break his fall. And Rick grimaced when he realised that one hand had found the lieutenants thigh whilst the other had narrowly missed his groin.

"Rick..." Horatio began tightly, "if you want to do some male bonding, perhaps your efforts would be best spent with Fabian."

"Shut up, Horatio!" Rick growled as he attempted to untangle himself from the other man. He looked up when he felt a pair of eyes and met Ryan's inquisitive glance. "Stop gawking and concentrate on the dance moves, Wolfe!"

"Like you and H are, you mean?" Ryan teased back. He glanced over at Fabian and Valera and then spoke again. "Besides, I can't. Valera's a little tied up right now, quite literally in fact."

Stetler hauled himself to his feet and looked over to where Ryan gestured. Valera couldn't have been closer to their dance teacher's body if she tried and Rick's mouth hung open when he saw her hand cup the man's bottom.

**_/EC/_**

Eric and Calleigh still hadn't moved; both were oblivious to the events unfolding around them. They were both terrified to close the final gap between their lips, but equally terrified to pull away, knowing that reality would hit and the awkwardness would return.

The burning in Calleigh's chest reminded her that she needed to breathe and she did, swallowing when Eric's eyes flickered to her mouth when he felt her exhale. She shivered as Eric's fingers flexed against her waist as he struggled to control himself, and she stopped breathing again when his lips inched nearer. She kept her eyes fixed on his in an attempt to shoot him a warning look, but she knew that it probably resembled something closer to a look of longing than one of resistance. So in a moment of despair she closed her eyes, hating that she suddenly felt so weak.

Eric frowned, a little unsure about what to do. He wanted to kiss her so badly and their close proximity was making his desire even stronger, but he was terrified to do anything that might push her away; she was the one that had to take the final step in this moment because otherwise, she'd run from him. Although, thinking about it, she was probably going to run anyway...

"Cal?" he breathed, wincing at his pleading tone.

Her eyes fluttered open and she bit her lip, knowing what he was asking her to do. She wanted to oblige, really she did, but something was stopping her, something besides the fear of what the consequences would be and she couldn't quite work out what it was.

"FABIAN!" Rick suddenly roared. "I did not ask you to give a lesson in foreplay; I asked you to give a lesson in dance!"

And that's when she remembered.

Calleigh pulled herself free from Eric and pushed him backwards as reality crashed in. She turned her attention to the scene on her right, desperately trying to regain her composure; _'what had she been thinking!'_ Her eyes scanned the room frantically, desperately searching for any indication that someone had seen what had just nearly happened between herself and Eric, and she breathed a sigh of relief when she realised that no one had. Her gaze eventually settled onto Valera and Fabian who were now so far apart that it made the distance she'd put between herself and Eric look pathetic.

"Rick, I was simply showing Maxine some additional steps," Fabian stated.

"Yeah, Stetler, just like you showed Horatio a couple of minutes ago," Ryan added with mock sincerity.

Stetler's eyes widened and he clenched his jaw. "Wolfe, I suggest you shut up! This exercise is over! I want everyone outside and on the field now!" he waved his arms when no one moved. "GO!"

He shot Valera a glare as she slipped Fabian her card and whispered, "Call me."

"New rule!" Rick called to the group as they made their way out of the hall. "No fraternizing with the help!"

"I bet his housekeeper's singing hallelujah as I speak," Valera muttered, shooting a lingering look at Fabian as they exited the room.

**_/EC/_**

Calleigh gulped in the fresh air as soon as she left the building and made her way over to the spectator's bench that overlooked the field. She sat herself down and drew her arms across her chest as she tried to fight away the shock of how close she'd let Eric get, at how close she'd been to kissing him...

"Have you seen what Stetler's next activity is?" a voice called.

Calleigh looked up as Natalia sat beside her. "No, have you?"

Natalia shook her head and took her shoes off. She began to massage her feet and shot a glare at Tripp.

"I take it Frank doesn't move so well?" Calleigh teased.

"No, I actually thought he'd broken my foot at one point," Natalia sighed. "That dance was excruciating."

Calleigh glanced over at Eric and bit her lip. "Tell me about it," she replied softly as he met her gaze.

"Oh come on, Calleigh! You got to dance with Eric and you both moved so perfectly together that - "

"Yes, thank you." Calleigh cut her off; _'she didn't want to move perfectly with Eric.'_ She squirmed in her discomfort as her heart argued back against that thought and she drew her arms across herself tighter.

Natalia eyed her carefully, a little taken aback at her sharp tone. She caught sight of Eric talking to Ryan a little way away and she couldn't help but notice that his eyes kept flickering over at Calleigh; _'Oh,'_ Natalia thought. _'That's what's wrong.'_

"Hey, Calleigh, I know it's none of my business, but is there something going on between you and Eric?" she asked, knowing that she shouldn't have done as soon as the words left her mouth.

Calleigh's eyes snapped to Natalia's as her mind bordered on panic-mode. "No, what makes you think that?" she kept her voice controlled and forced a tight smile.

Natalia considered how best to answer; it was obvious that Calleigh wasn't going to give anything away. Before she could reply, however, Stetler interrupted them.

"Alright team, I want you all in a line. I am going to hand you some equipment in preparation for our next activity."

"What is it by the way?" Ryan asked as the group slowly assembled in front of Rick.

"Fencing," Rick replied. "And before you ask, Wolfe, fencing requires patience, tactics and trust."

Valera arched an eyebrow as Stetler began to look her up and down. "Touching's extra," she stated coldly.

"Is that what you told Fabian?" he shot back and began to rummage around in a box that he'd brought from the building. "How big would you say you are?"

Valera's mouth hung open and she widened her eyes. "I don't really think that's any of your business!"

He ignored her and handed her a padded suit and then turned to Calleigh.

"I'll get my own, thank you." She shot him a glare and drew her arms across her body.

"Yeah, I think I can manage too, Stetler," Natalia added.

"Alright," he sighed and rolled his eyes. "Everyone sort your own suits out and once you're sorted, get back into a line. There are some rules I need to give you before we start."

**/EC/**

A good ten minutes and several arguments later - "Stetler, are you sure this suit offers enough protection?" "Shut it Wolfe!" - the group had reassembled in front of Rick.

"Okay, rule number one: keep your helmets on at all times. Rule number two: no whacking anyone with your foil - " He paused when he saw Frank's baffled expression. "That's the name of your sword Tripp. Now, rule number three: the target area is restricted to the torso only. I don't want to see anyone thrusting at people's arms or legs, got it? Good. Horatio come and stand next to me please."

"Rick..." Horatio began, "are you sure you wouldn't rather get Fabian for this - "

"Horatio!" Stetler spat as the other man took up his new position. He shot Horatio a glare before he continued. "I am the leader of team one and you are the leader of team two. We shall take it in turns to pick our team members. I pick Calleigh."

Calleigh eyed Stetler curiously, a little shocked that he had chosen her, and she then flashed him a dangerous smile and made her way over to him.

Rick scratched the back of his nervously; he had picked Calleigh because only a fool would want to be on the receiving end of her foil and he wanted to ensure his safety from any of her plots. He'd noticed that she had gone back to avoiding Eric and he felt confident that the man was no longer a threat either.

"Eric," Horatio picked.

"Tripp."

"Natalia."

Stetler weighed up the pros and cons between Ryan and Valera and eventually decided on Ryan; _'at least he could be confident that Ryan wouldn't hit on any members of his team.'_

"Okay, Ryan, you're with me so Valera you're with Horatio."

Ryan glanced over at Calleigh in an attempt to see if she was planning anything. She looked deep in thought but he wasn't quite sure that she had actually thought of anything... yet. All he knew was that regardless, he was glad that he was on her team.

"Horatio, take your team and line them up over there. My team, line up over here parallel to them," Stetler barked. "We are going to recreate the British-American War of 1812. Horatio, your team is Great Britain and my team, we shall be America. Which ever - "

"Uh, Stetler? I'm pretty sure they had guns and cannons, not short, blunt swords," Ryan interrupted.

"It's a foil, Wolfe! Just use your imagination, okay?" Stetler barked. "Which ever team is defeated first loses. Once that is done, the remaining people shall fight between them to produce a sole winner. Now are there any questions?"

Ryan groaned when he realised that it was pot luck as to whether he was going to have to come into contact with Calleigh's foil or not. He'd be safe until the game switched from team warfare to 'last-man-standing' and even then it depended on whether Calleigh made it to that stage. He then cursed himself for being so ridiculous; _'of course she would.'_

Stetler was thinking the same thing but he felt confident that if he survived long enough to have to fight her, then he'd be able to overpower her with his strength; he had the advantage in this game.

Calleigh heard Frank mutter something but she switched off, her brain suddenly preoccupied with an idea. Everything that had happened between her and Eric today had been Stetler's fault with his ridiculous activities and she was determined to vent her frustration out on him in this next one. The only way she'd be able to do it, however, was if both she and Stetler managed to stay 'alive' until the end and if _he_ didn't? Well, she could live with that, just as long as whoever got him made sure it hurt. She suddenly caught Eric's eye and she dropped the eye contact immediately; he was on the opposing team, the enemy. _'She was going to have to fight Eric.'_

Eric ran a hand through his hair when he realised what she was thinking. He wasn't quite sure that he'd be able to 'stab' her with his foil; even though it was blunt and everyone was in padded suits, it still hurt. Part of him felt that he could, however; he couldn't help but be a little frustrated that she'd shut him out _again _but before he had a chance to ponder the thought further, Stetler gave a cry of, "En Guarde!" and the battle began.

**_/EC/_**

Calleigh found herself up against Valera almost immediately and only just managed to block the other woman's thrust. She widened her eyes, a little taken aback at Valera's persistence as she was forced to parry again. "Valera, what - " She was cut off by another wild thrust and she clenched her jaw, suddenly a little flared up at her supposed friend's violent streak. Calleigh waited for Valera to strike again and then went for a surprise counter attack, smiling when her foil came into contact with the other woman's torso.

"Ouch, Calleigh! That was my belly button!" Valera cried as she stalked off to join Tripp who had been felled by Horatio.

Calleigh then turned her attention to Ryan who was struggling with Eric, and almost got caught herself when Horatio seized the opportunity in her distraction. Her mouth hung open as she found herself battling her boss and she couldn't help but feel a little strange about trying to prod him with a blunt sword.

Eric jumped backwards as Ryan's foil flailed towards him and he immediately counter-attacked with a spinning strike, narrowly missing Ryan's torso as the man parried. Eric was determined to get to the end; he knew that Calleigh would be thinking the same and he wanted to fight against her. Not to hurt her, of course, but he was starting to view this activity almost as a metaphor for the continuous battle that they both fought. His aim was to break through her defences; hers was to ensure that they held. If he could win this battle, then maybe it would shock her or weaken her just long enough so that he could get a foothold. He suddenly saw an opportunity as Ryan stumbled backwards from a particularly hard parry and he struck quickly to put him out of the fight.

"You didn't have to jab it so hard, Delko," Ryan muttered as he rubbed his chest and walked away.

Eric ignored him when out the corner of his eye, he saw Natalia fall to Stetler and he moved quickly to take her place, throwing a strong swing Rick's way.

Calleigh feigned to the right as Horatio came at her _again_ and she spun quickly as his body shot passed her with the motion of his thrust, allowing her to poke him square on the back.

"Touché," he responded.

She flashed him a smile through the mesh of her helmet. "You know I would never normally intentionally..." She trailed off as he held up a hand for her to stop, returning her smile as he did so. He then walked over to the bench of the wounded and she turned her attention back to the fight.

Eric growled as Rick aimed a particularly nasty strike at him and he only just managed to get out of the way in time.

"Calm down, Delko. It's only a game," Rick teased as he aimed another thrust.

"Stetler, we won the war," Calleigh cut in.

Eric waited for Rick to back off before he met her gaze. Her eyes held a steely determination in them and he nodded, silently acknowledging her plan. Her eyes flickered to Stetler and she nodded back at Eric to signal that he should strike first. He raised his eyebrows, a little unsure as to what she was going to do but she turned away and spoke to Stetler once more.

"Last person standing wins?"

Rick swallowed. He was suddenly very aware of who he was up against: Eric and Calleigh. _'Oh, God.'_ Instead of showing his fear, however, he decided to put on a brave front and try to catch her off guard. "En Guarde!" he cried as he flew at her.

He frowned when he found himself stumbling backwards as Eric got there first and parried the thrust that had been aimed at Calleigh, and Stetler froze when he realised that she'd disappeared from view. Before he had a chance to panic, Eric leveled a strike his way and he only just managed to parry it.

"Don't look so worried, Stetler. It's only a game," Eric teased, echoing Rick's earlier words.

Rick grunted as he was forced to parry again and cried out when Eric's follow up strike forced him to spin round. He groaned when he came face to face with Calleigh and waited for the inevitable, wincing when he felt the sharp jab from her foil. "You know what, Duquesne? When we get back to the lab, I'm going to request that you have a psychological examination."

"Oh, Rick," she began sweetly, deliberately enhancing her Southern accent. "No one likes a sore loser."

He bit back his retort and simply shot her a glare before he made his way over to the bench. He couldn't help but be a little interested as to what was about to happen; Calleigh was about to take Eric on, one to one…

**_/EC/_**

Calleigh turned to face Eric as soon as Stetler had sat down and the two of them took up their positions. She was a little afraid about fighting with Eric, knowing that the outcome would signal a beginning or an end; both of them had silently agreed upon that. It was no longer a case of simply prodding each other with a metal stick and being able to say, _'I won.'_ No, it ran deeper that that. It was about their relationship: Eric the Champion of Romance and she the Champion of Reason.

"Hey, Cal?" Eric called as they sized one another up.

"What?" she replied as she gripped her foil tighter.

"True or false; all is fair in love and war?"

She arched an eyebrow as she considered his question. She was a little unsure as to what he was asking her and she frowned as she struggled to come up with a definition for the adage. '_All is fair in love and war; any conduct is permissible in extreme circumstances, normal morality suspended.'_ He was asking her if it was okay to attack her and if it were anyone but Eric, she would have answered true without a moment's hesitation, but his question also held a challenge in it; if she replied true, she couldn't help but feel that it would be an admission that she loved him, however small, but if she replied false, she knew he'd know that she was lying and he'd probably throw the fight. Either way her pride was hurt and he won; he'd backed her into a corner without even striking yet.

Her fingers flexed on the handle of her foil and she took a deep breath, finally deciding on an answer. "True," she murmured quietly.

Eric grinned and wiggled his eyebrows at her through the mesh of his helmet before he took a step forwards and thrust a strike at her, his heart pounding at the sound of steel on steel when she parried his attack. She thrust back at him and he feigned to the right, nearly managing to hit her with a counter-attack but she parried again. He held his sword against hers for a moment and took a moment to steady himself before she managed to slash his foil away and strike. He grinned again when he was forced backwards and he got ready to take another swipe at her because however ridiculous he sounded, he was dueling for her heart and he intended to win...

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I figured it was about time I inserted the title of the fic somewhere in there. It took me ages to work out how.

Anyway, I shall be off now. I'll update ASAP.

Reviews very much appreciated.


	8. Something's Got to Give

I must have sat in front of this screen for at least half an hour before I actually wrote anything; I had no idea what I wanted to do! I shoot myself in the foot with these cliffhangers... but I finally came up with this.

Enjoy! x

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**Something's Got to Give…**

* * *

Ryan was trying his hardest not to blink. Calleigh and Eric were moving so quickly and with so much intensity that he didn't want to take his eyes off the action for fear that he might miss something. They'd been at it for around ten minutes now and it was obvious that neither of them were going to back down anytime soon but, for some reason, their duel was still mesmerising. He felt Natalia wince next to him as Calleigh's foil narrowly missed Eric's abdomen and he dragged his eyes away from the fight to look at her.

"Who do you think's going to win?" he whispered.

Natalia shrugged but kept her eyes on the action. "Eric," she replied. "I think he wants it more."

Ryan looked back over at Calleigh and watched her carefully for a moment. She looked a little tired and it was clear that she was beginning to weaken, but Ryan knew he shouldn't count her out just yet; even when her strength was slightly diluted, Calleigh was still dangerous. "What do you think is going on between them, anyway?" he asked.

Natalia turned to face him and held his gaze as she considered his question. "I'm not sure," she replied. "But whatever it is, Calleigh's fighting it."

Ryan turned his attention back to the fight just in time to see Calleigh lunge at Eric again and he nodded. "Well, she's doing a pretty good job at doing so."

Natalia smiled at him and followed his gaze back to the action. "Yeah, but Eric's not the type to give up."

"Neither is Calleigh," Ryan reminded her.

"But she's already losing," Natalia argued.

Ryan frowned and turned to face her. "What?"

"Look carefully, Ryan, it's not just Eric that she's fighting."

Ryan stared back at her for a moment, a little confused. He glanced over at Calleigh and studied her actions. She was certainly making it very difficult for Eric to get a strike in, but he couldn't help but feel that her movements were a little desperate and whenever Eric did manage to lunge at her, she waited until the last possible moment before she parried; _'her heart wasn't in it.'_

"You think she's fighting herself," Ryan realised.

Natalia opened her mouth to reply but she was cut off by Valera. "Does anyone else feel like we should have popcorn or something? I mean seriously, how much longer is this going to take?"

Natalia laughed and exchanged a knowing look with Ryan. "Well, that depends on Calleigh," she murmured quietly, loud enough so that only he could hear.

**_/EC/_**

Eric was breathing heavily now; the sheer amount of effort he was putting into the fight was taking its toll and he wasn't quite sure how much longer he could keep the momentum up. His only consolation was that Calleigh seemed to be struggling, too and he willed himself to continue, refusing to give up.

Calleigh held her breath as Eric's foil just missed her side and she was forced to parry his follow-up strike. She took a step backwards and parried again before trying to catch him off guard with a low aimed thrust but he read her move and blocked it. She was starting to get a little desperate now, so much so that she wasn't even sure why she was still fighting him. Part of her wanted him to win, wanted to just let go and give into heart but her head stopped her; her head and her pride. The excuse of professionalism had gone out the window a long time ago; she couldn't justify using it when she took into account how she'd been acting today. No, her actions had been far from professional, no matter how much fun she'd had at Stetler's expense.

"Delko! Duquesne! Hurry it up! We've got a schedule to keep to!" Rick's voice boomed.

Eric rolled his eyes and took another lunge at Calleigh, letting out a sigh of frustration when she parried _again._ He knew she was stubborn, but this was just ridiculous. "What's the likelihood of you giving up anytime soon?" he asked as she levelled a strike at him and he was forced into a doge.

Calleigh was silent for a moment, her head and her heart telling her two different answers. She lunged again and he blocked her strike, sliding his sword down hers and applying enough pressure so that it was trapped. She made an effort to tug herself free and sighed when she realised she couldn't. "Not high," she answered as she tried again, suddenly a little flared up.

Eric laughed and shook his head, inadvertently releasing the pressure just enough so that she could slice his foil away and step backwards. "So what do you propose we do then?" he asked as he aimed a thrust her way.

"Well," she began, pausing to counter-strike, "you could do the gentlemanly thing and allow this fair maiden to win."

"Didn't anyone tell you?" he grinned as he parried her lunge. "Chivalry is dead."

"Duquesne!" Rick suddenly shouted. "If you're dragging this out on purpose just to prevent us from beginning the next activ - "

"Shut up, Stetler!" Calleigh shot back, cutting him off.

Eric laughed and feigned to the left as she made an attempt to catch him off guard. "You have any idea what it is?" he asked as he forced her backwards.

"The next activity?" she breathed, as he pinned her foil to his once more. "Not a clue."

Eric increased the pressure on her foil and stepped forwards, invading her personal space. "Aren't you interested to find out?"

She attempted to pull free and sighed heavily when she realised that he'd trapped her again. "Not really," she lied. She couldn't help but be a little curious but, right now, winning this fight demanded her full concentration.

He took another step forwards, his face just inches from hers. "Just let go, Cal," he whispered. He couldn't see her face properly through the mesh of her helmet, but he knew that she was considering it and he held his breath as he waited for her answer...

**_/EC/_**

Rick was getting restless now and he glanced down at his watch. They still had a few activities left and the next one was at a new location. He heard a rustle to his left and looked past Tripp to see that Ryan had handed Valera his itinerary. Rick watched as the woman studied it and rolled his eyes when she grimaced. "Something wrong, Valera?" he sighed.

"Why are you doing this to us, Stetler?" she groaned. "In fact, why am I even here? I'm not a CSI, I'm a DNA specialist."

"You're here to make up numbers," he stated simply.

She widened her eyes at him, clearly insulted. "You are quite possibly the most tactless and obnoxious person I have ever met!"

"What? You asked me a question so I answered it!"

"Yeah, but you didn't have to be so rude about it!" she cried, reaching for her foil.

Rick stood up and backed away as she approached him. "You're mad at me for telling you the truth?"

"Yes!" she shrieked as she swung her sword at him.

"Well, what did you want me to say?" he yelled as he dodged her swipe.

"Oh, I don't know. How about, 'because, Valera, you are a valued member of this team!'"

Rick's mouth hung open as his brain struggled to process what was happening. "I'm the one who should be angry!" he spat. "Not only did you grope our potentially gay dance teacher, you're now - "

"I wasn't aware you had a gay-dar, Rick..." Horatio cut in, "is there something you want to tell us?"

Rick shot daggers at him as he was forced to jump out of Valera's way. "That's it!" he screamed. "So far, I've been abused by a paint gun - several actually - been sent head first into a mud pool, had my mouth set on fire, been forced to dance with a man whose posture makes it so God damn hard to do so - you don't always have to stand at an angle you know! - and now, I'm being attacked by a nut job and am having my sexuality questioned!"

"So, what's your point?" Ryan asked, knowing that it would send Stetler over the edge; it had the desired effect.

Rick covered his face with his hands and began to massage it, clenching his features as he did so. He fell to his knees and let out a growl of frustration and began to mutter obscenities while he tugged at his hair.

Valera stepped backwards, suddenly a little scared. She watched as Rick stood up and began to pace ferociously and she glanced at the rest of the group; they all looked as shocked as she did. "Um, does this mean that the day is over?" she braved.

Rick's eyes snapped to hers and she winced at the menace that they contained. "No, Valera, it does not," he replied, his voice cold. "Unfortunately, Human Resources insisted that we spend a minimum of nine hours together and we still have another four and a half to go. The only other option we have is to continue tomorrow but, quite frankly, I'd rather do another dance with Horatio than have to endure another day with ALL OF YOU!" he screamed the last three words. He closed his eyes and took a step backwards. His hands came to rest on the back of his head and he dug his fingers into his scalp, struggling to regain what little composure he had left.

"Did we miss something?" a Southern voice called.

He opened his eyes and arched an eyebrow as Calleigh approached, removing her helmet as she did so. Eric wasn't far behind her and Stetler sighed. "Who won?" he asked, not really caring at this point.

Calleigh exchanged a smile with Eric before she answered. "We both did," she murmured, her eyes never leaving Eric's.

**_/EC/_**

_"Just let go, Cal," he whispered. He couldn't see her face properly through the mesh of her helmet but he knew that she was considering it, and he held his breath as he waited for her answer..._

_Calleigh bit her lip as her head and her heart re-ignited the argument that they'd been having all day. Those four words that Eric had said so simply, had become the most complicated sentence she'd ever heard. She closed her eyes, knowing that he wouldn't attempt to attack her until she'd answered his question and she nearly laughed when she realised what that meant; Eric was asking her if it was okay to win. They both knew that he was going to and she could feel her heart slowly winning the battle against her head. She was vaguely aware of someone shouting behind her but she ignored it, focusing solely on replying to Eric. Her reason was beginning to falter now as her heart's arguments became stronger with each new beat and, eventually, her head allowed her to speak._

_"Okay," she heard herself whisper._

_Eric did nothing for a moment; he still hadn't processed what she'd said and it wasn't until he felt her grip slacken on her foil that he realised he'd won. He looked down as her weapon fell to the ground and looked back up when he felt her gaze._

_"But if you think that I'm going to let you poke me with that thing then - "_

_"I wouldn't dream of it," he laughed, cutting her off._

_"And, just so we're clear, you only won because I let you," she argued, determined to hold onto some sense of her pride._

_"Of course," Eric shot back, acknowledging her need and besides, what she'd said was true; he'd asked her to back down and she had. Whilst his own sense of pride would like to think that he'd won because she hadn't been able to resist his charms, he knew that there was more truth in her argument. But that only made him happier because it finally meant that she had accepted everything that had happened and was happening between them._

_"So, what happens now?" he asked._

_She was silent for a moment as she considered the question. She hadn't actually thought about it and hell, it had taken her almost an entire day - no, longer than that - to finally acknowledge her feelings for him, and the consequences of that acceptance had completely escaped her. A loud growl interrupted her thoughts and she turned her attention to the scene that was unfolding behind her. Stetler was on his knees, kneading his face and she widened her eyes, a little confused as to what was going on; she hadn't even done anything. She heard Eric drop his foil and she turned back to him, suddenly remembering that she hadn't answered his question. "We get through today and then we discuss it."_

_Eric raised his eyebrows and nearly laughed. It was so typical of her to need to analyse the situation, but he respected her wishes and she was probably right; he wanted this relationship to work. He couldn't help, however, but be a little worried that she was going to dismiss what had just happened or shut him out again._

_"I promise," she murmured, reading his thoughts, and once she was satisfied that he believed her, she headed over to the rest of the team, just catching the end of Stetler's rant._

_"I'd rather do another dance with Horatio than have to endure another day with ALL OF YOU!"_

**_/EC/_**

Once Rick had calmed down enough, he'd ordered everyone back into the mini bus and they'd set off for their next location. Valera grimaced when she saw it. She really wasn't looking forward to this next activity; boats made her terribly seasick. She gingerly stepped off the mini bus and glanced around at her surroundings. Stetler had brought them to a freshwater lake and four speedboats were gently bobbing up and down with the motion of the water. Rick was talking to a man a few feet away and she assumed that he was the owner of the boats.

"Boat racing," Ryan muttered behind her. "What the hell does boat racing teach us?"

"Come on, Ryan, lighten up," Eric called as he walked past.

"Not everyone loves the water, Delko," Ryan shot back.

"I don't think his good mood has anything to do with the water," Natalia whispered, gesturing to Calleigh.

Ryan watched as Calleigh moved to stand next to Eric and the two of them exchanged a shy smile. Eric then muttered something to her and she laughed, her smile growing as she did so. Before he could comment, however, he caught sight of Stetler striding towards him; the next activity was about to start.

"Everyone, this is James Saunders," Rick paused to glare at Valera. "Keep your hands off him." She widened her eyes, ready to retort, but he continued, effectively silencing her. "He's just going to run through the controls with us and then I shall split us into pairs. That yellow flag that you can see is our starting point. The race route is simple; we head in a straight line until we reach that red flag over there and then we steer round it and finish back at the yellow flag. This exercise is about remaining calm under pressure and ensuring that you keep going, despite the odds." He nodded for James to take over and the man led them over to the first boat and gestured for them all to get aboard.

"Okay, the controls are simple. This is the emergency break." He pointed to a red button. "And this here is the throttle." He pointed to a lever. "You move it up to increase your speed and lower it to decrease it. There are three rules; increase the speed steadily; the boat will stall if you don't. Slow down when attempting corners and, finally, maintain a wide berth between other boats; it's going to get a little bumpy out there."

"Everyone got that?" Stetler asked, and once he was satisfied that they all had, he continued, "Tripp you're with Horatio, Natalia you're with Valera, Ryan you're with Eric and Calleigh you're with me."

"Again, Stetler? What have I done to deserve such an honour?" Calleigh asked, feigning sincerity.

"I want you in my sight at all times, Duquesne," he shot back. He doubted that she would try anything if her own safety was at risk, too and if it meant that he didn't have to be paired up with Horatio, well, that was an added bonus; he'd had more than enough contact with him today to know that he'd be squirming for weeks. "This boat here is ours," he began again. "Everyone else get off and choose your own and make sure you put on your lifejackets."

The team did as they were told and Calleigh was just about to sit in the driving seat of her and Stetler's boat when he stopped her. "Oh, I don't think so, Duquesne. I'll drive, you just sit there and look pretty."

She shot him a glare and settled herself down in the passenger seat. "Shouldn't I at least cover the emergency button?"

"No, you're not allowed to touch anything," Rick snapped as he sat down and reached for the throttle. "Everyone follow me. We're going to line up just behind the yellow flag. James will start the race with his flare gun," he called over his shoulder as he slowly lifted the throttle.

Calleigh sighed and rolled her eyes, suddenly determined to come up with a way to annoy Rick; she didn't like being sidelined. She smiled as an idea formed in her mind and looked behind her as their boat gathered speed, and she made eye contact with Eric. She widened her eyes and gestured towards Stetler in an attempt to inform him of her plan. He stared back at her, obviously realising that she wanted him to do something but a little confused as to what. She pointed to the wake that her boat left behind and then pointed at Eric and then back to Stetler. Eric widened his eyes as he suddenly understood and he shook his head; '_there was no way that he was going to do that.' _She arched an eyebrow and gave him a look that said, _'you will'_ and he sighed, knowing that he didn't really have a choice; _'he never could say no to her.'_

"Uh, what's going on?" Ryan suddenly asked next to him.

"Calleigh's got another plan," Eric sighed.

"Is it safe?" Ryan gulped.

Eric raised his eyebrows and gestured to his lifejacket. "Just make sure you know how to use this."

Ryan grimaced and looked back over at Calleigh. Whatever she was planning, he hated it already and he began to fiddle with his lifejacket, tightening the straps around him. Before he had a chance to ask anything else, he was suddenly aware of the boat slowing as Eric maneuvered it towards the start line; _'Oh, God.'_

Rick waited patiently for everyone else to take up their positions before he turned to James who was stood on the bank of the lake, flare gun in hand. James nodded and held the gun up, mentally counting to three before he pulled the trigger and a short _whoosh__,_ followed by a loud _bang_ signaled the start of the race...

* * *

There is actually a good reason for this cliffhanger and it isn't simply me being mean... I've run out of time and have to dash off.

**Edit: Calleigh's plan will become clear in the next chapter.**

As always, I'll update ASAP.

Reviews very much appreciated.


	9. Because Rules are there for a Reason

Wow, I just want to take a moment to thank you guys for all the reviews. It never ceases to amaze me that whenever I check my email and get that little _ping _sound to say that I have new mail and I see _'review alert,'_ just quite how excited I get. It's seriously freaky and probably unhealthy. No wonder writing is so addictive...

Anyway, onto the next chapter.

Enjoy! x

* * *

**Because Rules are there for a Reason...**

* * *

As soon as she heard the _bang_, Valera took a deep breath and slowly began to lift the throttle, gritting her teeth as the boat kicked into life. She could feel her stomach churning already and she couldn't help but feel that she was in serious danger of throwing up her lunch.

"Valera, are you okay?" Natalia asked, noticing the other woman's discomfort.

Valera nodded and kept her attention focused on the red flag that was barely visible in the distance. Calleigh and Stetler were in the lead with Eric and Ryan close behind them. Horatio and Tripp were currently behind her and Natalia, and Valera nearly smiled; _'she wasn't going to come last.'_ The thought had just entered her mind when Horatio and Tripp roared past, waving as they did so. Valera sighed and with a sudden newfound determination, she lifted the throttle faster.

"What are you doing?" Natalia shrieked, feeling the boat jolt forwards. "James told us to increase our speed gently!"

Valera was just about to retort when the boat suddenly spluttered and choked to a halt. Natalia gave her a look that said, _'well that was clever,' _and Valera rolled her eyes. "It's fine, I'll just restart it."

Natalia kept her eyes transfixed on Valera as the other woman attempted to start the boat again and widened them when nothing happened. "What's wrong with it?" she asked.

Valera turned to face her, suddenly feeling a little panicky; they were stuck in the middle of the lake, bobbing up and down with the motion of the water and not going anywhere. _'Oh, God.'_

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh kept her eyes on the horizon as she waited for an opportunity to execute her plan. Eric and Ryan weren't close enough yet and she drew her arms across her chest in an attempt to stifle her impatience. She looked over at Stetler and smiled as she pictured what was about to happen to him.

"What do you want, Duquesne?" he barked, sensing her gaze.

"Nothing," she replied sweetly.

He took his eyes off of the red flag briefly to look at her. She looked dangerous but as long as he was in control of the boat, she couldn't do anything, _'could she?' _He'd barely had a chance to ponder the thought, however, when Horatio and Tripp steam-rolled past.

"Rick..." Horatio greeted with a wave, before he turned his attention back to the horizon.

Stetler sighed irritably and his fingers flexed on the throttle as he increased the speed of the boat; there was no way that he was about to be beaten by Horatio, especially considering the intimate positions that Fabian had forced them into. No, Rick needed to reassert his male dominance and he growled a little as he lifted the throttle higher.

"Something funny, Duquesne?" he barked as she attempted to stifle her laughter.

"No," she eventually replied before, "so what was it like dancing with Horatio, anyway?" The glare and the shudder that she received in Stetler's response told her all she needed to know...

**/EC/**

Ryan kept his eyes focused ahead as Eric tried his hardest to maneuver their boat into the position that would allow Calleigh's plan to take effect. Their boat was beginning to wobble about quite strongly and Ryan had taken to inhaling and exhaling deeply. He briefly considered asking Eric what Calleigh's plan was but then decided against it, realising that he'd rather not know.

Eric was having trouble getting close enough to her boat; the waves that it left behind were making it difficult for him to keep his own boat steady. He still wasn't entirely sure what Calleigh was going to do, but he thought he had a pretty good idea. If Eric were to increase his speed behind her, Stetler would be forced to change course a little to get out of the way and if this were serious competitive boat racing, he knew the move would be considered 'illegal.' He didn't quite know why Calleigh wanted him to make it, though, but he could tell what the consequences would be and he didn't like it; there was a strong possibility that she would follow Stetler.

**/EC/**

Valera closed her eyes as she lifted the throttle for what felt like the hundredth time and willed it to work. The rest of the team were in the distance now but, quite frankly, she couldn't care less. Her most important concern was that she was stuck in the middle of a lake and she had an overwhelming urge to throw up.

"Are you sure you're doing it correctly?" Natalia asked beside her.

"How many ways are there to lift a lever?" she snapped.

"Hey, don't start getting all mad at me. I'm not the one who stalled the - " Natalia was cut off as the boat suddenly roared into life and shot forwards at an extremely fast pace. "I thought we'd discussed the accelerating slowly thing!"

Valera turned to face her and held her hands up as the boat continued to increase in speed. "I'm not doing anything," she whispered, clearly terrified.

Natalia stared back at her as panic began to well up inside of her and she glanced down at the untouched throttle. "Well, make it stop!" she hissed, a little hysterical.

Valera instinctively reached for the lever and attempted to push it back down, nearly breaking down there and then when she realised that she couldn't. She looked back at Natalia and swallowed.

"It's okay," Natalia soothed, speaking more to herself than Valera. "Just try not to panic."

Valera arched an eyebrow as she tugged at the throttle _again_ and she closed her eyes when still nothing happened; _'there goes not panicking...'_

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh smiled when she saw Horatio and Tripp corner around the red flag and she turned round to make eye contact with Eric. He'd finally got his boat into the right position and she nodded at him, signaling for him to force Stetler off course just as he was about to steer around the red flag. Eric shot her a weary look but she merely smiled back at him and raised her eyebrows, letting him know that he didn't have a say in the matter. She briefly made eye contact with Ryan and attempted to reassure him with one of her most sincere smiles, but it seemed to have quite the opposite effect; he looked even more terrified.

Ryan tensed as she looked away and he rubbed his eyes, trying hard not to panic; if Calleigh had taken a moment to try and calm him, her plan had to be dangerous. He glanced at Eric when he felt the boat surge forwards and then looked back at the distance between theirs and Calleigh's boat. He widened his eyes as he realised what was about to happen and they widened further when his gaze settled on the red flag a few feet away. Before he could say anything, however, Stetler's voice boomed out towards them.

"Delko! Wolfe! I don't know what you're playing at but back off, now!"

"I'm sorry?" Eric called back. "I can't hear you properly. Could you speak up?"

Calleigh bit back her smile as Rick's features began to clench beside her. His hand instinctively reached for the throttle and he pushed it higher in an attempt to shake Eric from his tail. Eric anticipated the move, however, and managed to maintain the short distance between them. Stetler could see the red flag was fast approaching and he knew that he was going to have to slow down to take the corner, but Eric's persistence was beginning to affect him.

Calleigh made sure that Stetler had his attention focused on the flag before she made eye contact with Eric. She pointed to the wake that her boat left behind and motioned for Eric to cut into their path from the outside. He nodded in response but arched an eyebrow, clearly a little concerned for her safety, but once again she dismissed it and turned her head to focus on the up coming corner. She clocked the speed and was a little concerned that it wasn't high enough, so she stuck out her arm and gestured for Eric to increase his while she turned to Stetler. "Aren't we going a little fast? I mean, you're going to have to turn in a - "

"Shut up, Duquesne! I know what I'm doing," Rick cut her off. He knew she was probably right, but that only gave him the determination to ignore her. Besides, there was no way that he was going to let Eric out muscle him as well as Horatio, and it was with that thought that he pulled at the throttle again.

Calleigh smiled and shook her head; _'it was just too easy!'_ She'd known that Stetler would do the opposite to what she suggested and she reached out and gripped the hand rail tight as she waited for what was about to happen.

_**/EC/**_

Horatio squinted into the distance and nearly jumped when Valera and Natalia shot past him in the opposite direction. He and Tripp were already on the return journey, having rounded the red flag a few moments ago, but at the speed that the two women were traveling he was in serious danger of losing his lead. He suddenly heard a shout behind him and turned to see Natalia grab the wheel of her boat whilst Valera began to shriek hysterically.

"What are you doing?" she cried.

"Trying to stop us from ramming into the back of Eric's boat!" Natalia shot back as she twisted the wheel and the boat immediately began to spin.

Valera felt her stomach muscles clench as she got ready to hurl and she grimaced; _'oh this was not fun.'_

Horatio widened his eyes when he saw the boat begin to swirl around in the water like a mini hurricane. The waves that the motion was creating were rippling across the lake and even he and Tripp could feel their effects. The two women continued to bicker and shriek and Horatio frowned, suddenly very concerned.

"What the hell is going on?" Frank grunted next to him.

"Frank," Horatio began as he turned to face his friend, "I don't know but we, we are going to find out."

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh craned her neck round to see what all the commotion was about and suddenly felt the boat jolt as the ripples from Valera and Natalia made contact with it. Before she had a chance to say or do anything, however, she became aware of Eric and Ryan closing in on the starboard side. Rick growled beside her and he lifted the throttle higher, apparently oblivious to the fact that they were due to turn the corner in, '_oh, the next five seconds maybe?' _The waves that her own boat were creating were beginning to mix with the ones that Eric was making and those, together with Natalia and Valera's, were resulting in an extremely bumpy ride - not made any easier by the sudden increase in speed, and Calleigh couldn't help but begin to feel a little nervous.

Eric caught sight of Calleigh tensing and he found that he, too, was finding it a little unsettling being in the middle of the swelling and convulsing water. He heard Ryan inhale a sharp breath beside him as the man tried hard not to panic, and the action of the water was jerking the boat about so violently that Eric himself was finding it difficult to stay calm. He tried to steer his boat away from Calleigh's in an attempt to give Stetler a bit more leeway as he rounded the corner, but gave into his panic when he realised that it was too late. He watched as Stetler took on the corner tight and fast and nearly closed his eyes when the boat began to tilt. He kept his eyes fixed on Calleigh, praying that she wasn't about to fall in as Stetler's side rose up out of the water and the man was thrown out of it, making a loud _splash_ as his body connected with the surface of the lake; _'wow, that's got to hurt.'_

Calleigh held her breath as she waited for the boat to flip over. She'd needed the combination of Eric's waves and her own to unbalance the boat enough as Rick took on the corner, but she hadn't counted on Natalia and Valera losing control. The added energy that they'd given to the water, coupled with the speed that Rick had attempted to round the corner with, had jerked the boat far more violently than she'd anticipated. She could see the driver's side begin to tilt over her head but at that moment, another wave hit the other side of the boat and miraculously balanced it. Calleigh waited for the jerking to subside before she reached for the wheel and gave it a hard tug in an attempt to make it round the final stretch of the corner. She reached for the throttle and decreased the speed and then once she was satisfied that she had regained control of the vessel, she looked back over her shoulder. Her first instinct was to look for Eric and she breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that both he and Ryan had managed to steer themselves to safety. A loud thrashing sound suddenly captured her attention and she smiled as Stetler's lifejacket inflated and he began to wave his arms around uncontrollably.

"I did tell you to slow down Rick," she shrugged, feigning innocence.

He stared back at her for a moment as his rage rendered him temporarily speechless and he let out a low growl. "Duquesne!" he spat as he swallowed some water. "You did - "

"Calleigh!" Eric shouted, cutting Rick off.

He gestured for her to turn her eyes front ways and she did, immediately reaching for the emergency stop button when she saw what she was about to collide with. Horatio's boat was circling Valera and Natalia's whirlpool and he was yelling at them to hit the break, but they were so panic-stricken that neither of them were able to understand him.

"Maxine!" Calleigh called out. "Hit the big, red button!"

She caught sight of Valera's face in the blur and prayed to God that it was realisation that she'd seen creep across her features and not the overwhelming urge to be sick. Taking no chances, however, Calleigh reached for the wheel of her boat and spun it frantically as she attempted to get out of the way; she was slowing, but not fast enough.

Valera closed her eyes as she hit the emergency break - '_why hadn't she thought of that earlier!'_ - and waited for the inevitable _crunch_ of Calleigh's boat as it collided with her own, only daring to open them when she heard nothing. She glanced around and saw that Calleigh had managed to stop just a few inches across from the starboard side and Valera breathed a sigh of relief.

"There is a reason I do not like boats," she finally shrieked. "_This_ is the reason that I do not like boats!"

If it hadn't have been for her near-potentially-nasty-crash, or the fact that both Valera and Natalia were her friends, Calleigh would have laughed at how hysterical they both were right now. Natalia was pacing up and down the length of her boat, pausing every few paces or so as she contemplated saying something and then continuing when she realised that she didn't have words yet.

"Are you okay?" she heard a voice beside her.

Calleigh turned to face it and widened her eyes in surprise when she saw Eric there. His boat was 'parked' next to hers and he'd managed to climb aboard without her noticing. He placed a gentle hand on her arm and looked her over, checking for any potential injuries. "Eric, I'm fine," she flashed him a reassuring smile.

"Oi!" Stetler's voice suddenly boomed. "A little help here would be nice!"

The group turned to face the thrashing figure that was currently trying to swim towards them and failing miserably. The lifejacket was clearly an inconvenience and Stetler growled angrily as he found himself propelled upwards instead of forwards.

"Someone get me out of here," he gurgled. "Now!" he barked when none of them moved. His eyes connected with Horatio as the man grinned and Rick just managed a grimace before he swallowed another gulp of water.

"Rick…" Horatio began, "Rick, I'm coming to get you."

Stetler sighed and allowed his lifejacket to flip him onto his back. He closed his eyes and ran a hand through his dripping hair as he struggled to stay calm; he didn't know how, but Calleigh had managed to do something to him _again_ and he let out another growl as his anger hit him. He was suddenly aware of hands on his arms as Horatio hauled him up and into the boat and once he'd climbed to his feet, he shot the group a glare.

"You're welcome of course, Rick," Horatio told him.

Stetler merely grunted and peeled off his lifejacket. "I want everyone back on the bank now," he breathed, trying his hardest not to explode. He caught sight of Eric about to step back onto his own boat and Rick stopped him, suddenly very aware that there was no way that he was going to get on board a boat with Calleigh again. "Oh no you don't, Delko, you stay with Duquesne. Horatio, take me over to Ryan."

"Rick…" Horatio began, "a please would be nice."

Stetler closed his eyes and took a deep breath as he imagined impaling the man with a harpoon. "Just do it," he sighed.

Ryan widened his eyes as Stetler drew nearer to his boat and tensed as he clambered aboard. He glanced over at Calleigh, hoping that she didn't have another plan in store for Rick - especially considering that he was now in such close proximity to him - and Ryan breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that she was clearly still too amused with the consequences of the one that she'd just executed.

"I said, I want everyone back on the bank!" Stetler suddenly repeated, noticing that no one had moved yet. "Duquesne, I will deal with you on dry land."

"Uh, what about the race?" Ryan asked, cursing himself when he realised what he'd just asked. Luckily, however, Stetler merely shot him a glare and reached for the throttle.

_**/EC/**_

Valera practically leapt off and out of the boat as soon as it connected with the dock and she threw herself down onto the land, sighing happily now that she could breathe properly again.

"Get up, Valera, I want everyone on the mini bus. Not you, Duquesne, I want a word," Stetler yelled.

Calleigh rolled her eyes and drew her arms across her chest. "What exactly am I supposed to have done?" she sighed, feigning innocence.

"Damn it, Duquesne!" Stetler spat. "Ever since this day began, you have gone out of your way to humiliate me and you can pretend that you had nothing to do with what just happened, and I'll grant that perhaps it wasn't quite what you expected, but you certainly did something!"

Calleigh opened her mouth to reply but her retort was cut off by another voice.

"You people broke all of the rules I gave you!" James began in disbelief. "All of them!"

The two of them turned to watch as James sprinted past and began to inspect his boats for any damage. He began to mutter as he did so. "I said, 'maintain a wide berth,' so what do you do? Ignore it! I said, 'increase your speed slowly,' so what do you do?"

"Ignore it?" Calleigh finished, a little amused; the man was like a mini Stetler.

"Shut up, Duquesne," Stetler snapped as he began to wring out his clothing. He frowned when he caught sight of James striding towards him. "What?"

The man looked him up and down and shot daggers at him before he replied. "I don't know why you're blaming her," he gestured to Calleigh. "It's your own fault that you fell in! I said, 'decrease your speed when turning corners,' and you_ - "_

"Ignored it?" Stetler sighed.

"Yes!" James shrieked as he went back to surveying his boats.

Calleigh flashed Stetler a smile and shrugged. "Well there you have it, Rick. Can't blame me for something that was clearly your own fault."

She left him stood there, rooted to the spot as his anger flared up inside of him, and he let out a growl as she disappeared into the mini bus; _'God, she was infuriating!'_

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh exchanged a knowing look with Eric as she settled herself down in a seat next to him and shot him a playful smile. She frowned, however, when she saw that he was reluctant to return it and she raised her eyebrows questioningly.

"That was really stupid, Cal," he began. "You could have seriously hurt yourself out there."

She held his gaze for a moment and, for some reason, she found herself a little annoyed at what she perceived to be him being a little too overprotective, but the sincere look in his eyes melted her annoyance away and she reached for his hand to give it a gentle squeeze, realising that had their roles been reversed, she'd probably have shot him by now for being so reckless.

"I'm sorry," she smiled. "But really, I'm fine, I promise."

Apparently satisfied that she was, Eric squeezed her hand back and wiggled his eyebrows at her. "Just so you know, though - your impending danger aside, of course - seeing Stetler fly through the air and belly flop into the water is quite possibly one of the best things I've ever seen."

She laughed and was about to reply when Ryan suddenly pipped up.

"Hey guys? You're not going to believe the next activity!"

Calleigh eyed him curiously and shot him a puzzled look when she noticed that, for once, instead of dreading the next item on the agenda, Ryan looked positively excited about it. He noticed her confusion and handed her his itinerary. Calleigh scanned it until she found what she was looking for and she widened her eyes in horror when she saw it; _'Oh, God.'_

Eric peered over her shoulder when he saw her reaction and he gave her hand another squeeze when he realised why she looked so worried; _'well, this was going to be interesting...'_

* * *

And hopefully it will be... once I decide on what the next activity is of course because really, I have no idea. Oh, actually...

I'll try to update soon.

Reviews very much appreciated.


	10. They are Sneaky and They are Mobile

I'm starting to think that I need some sort of, "Don't try this at home," message at the beginning of each Chapter.

Enjoy! x

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**They are Sneaky and They are Mobile...**

* * *

Eric winced at the sharp pain he felt in his hand. Calleigh was gripping it so tightly that it was starting to turn white with the pressure. They could see their next location in the distance now, and he felt her squirm beside him as they drew ever nearer to it. He would have laughed if he didn't think that there would be a possibility of her shooting him and so instead, he smiled with the knowledge that she'd never told anyone but him about her fear of ants...

**_/EC/ Season 2, Episode 18 /EC/_**

Calleigh smiled as she greeted Eric in the alleyway. He was standing next to a dumpster, suited and gloved up, and ready to start removing the body that he'd found. "All right, you ready for a little dumpster diving?" he returned the smile as she, too, gloved up.

Calleigh glanced into the dumpster and grimaced at the sight. A young woman's body had been tossed into it and there was an angry gash on the side of her face. That wasn't what horrified her, however; no, it was what was crawling around and inside the wound. "Um," she paused as she watched several crawl across the girl's face and she looked back at Eric. "Okay, you know I don't mind getting my hands dirty. I mean maggots, wet trash... I am the first one in," she rushed, waving her hands around and her accent grew thicker as she grew more nervous.

"Okay," Eric laughed. "Well, what are you waiting for?"

Calleigh stared back at him for a moment as she contemplated whether to tell him or not; she knew it was ridiculous but she couldn't help it. "Ants," she finally said.

Eric laughed again and he grinned back at her. He glanced over towards the ants and watched as they scurried around the dead victim, and then he looked back at Calleigh, raising his eyebrows as he did so. "Ants?" he teased.

"Yes, I have got a problem with ants," Calleigh replied, and she began to wave her arms around again as she recited her reasons. "They are sneaky and they are mobile, and when they get on you, even if you get them off - "

"Okay, Calleigh, chill," Eric smiled, trying to stifle his laughter. "I'll take care of it. You can get our next floater."

Calleigh breathed a sigh of relief; suddenly the words _'you can get our next floater,'_ were the best words she'd ever heard. "I would love that," she smiled. "Thank you," she murmured softly, suddenly feeling a little silly.

Eric flashed her a playful grin as he lowered himself down into the dumpster and began to remove the body. He watched Calleigh go and couldn't help but chuckle to himself; _'she was adorable.'_

**_/EC/ A little while after that in my own imagination... /EC/_**

Eric sighed as he finished with his case report and he stretched out, trying to fight away the dull ache in his wrist from all the writing. He caught sight of Calleigh walking past the Trace lab and she smiled and popped her head around the door. "You done with that report?"

"Yeah," he held it up and watched as she stepped further into the room and sat down next to him.

She reached for a pen so she could add her own observations to it and glanced over at him when she felt his gaze. "What?" she asked, a little self-conscious.

"I was just wondering what the real story behind this ant phobia of yours was?" he grinned.

She widened her eyes at him and tucked her hair behind her ear, suddenly feeling pretty ridiculous. "I already told you. They crawl and they - "

"No, Cal. There's got to be more to it," he cut her off. "A bad experience maybe?"

Calleigh sighed and clasped her hands as she considered whether to tell him or not. He dipped his head, forcing her to look at him, and she bit her lip when she realised that there was no getting away from this one. "Okay, but you have to promise not to laugh."

He grinned and nodded as he drew his arms across his chest, waiting for her to continue.

"When I was seven, my dad took me on this 'adventure day' and we did all sorts of things; abseiling, go-karting, tennis... It was his way of making - " She hesitated. "Of making _things_ up to me."

Eric raised his eyebrows when he understood what she meant by _'things.'_ She was referring to her father's drinking.

"Anyway," she continued. "We went orienteering and we couldn't find one of the points on the map so we both started to search for it. Somehow, I got separated from him and I couldn't see him and I - " She paused and took a deep breath as she visualised what happened. "I was lost and scared and I came across this anthill - " She glared as he began to laugh. "It's not funny, Eric!"

"I'm sorry, Cal," he replied, trying to sound sincere. "Carry on."

She sighed her annoyance and drew her arms across her chest as she thought about how best to say it; she still had nightmares about it.

"You found the anthill and then what happened?" Eric prompted.

"Well," she squirmed. "I attempted to walk around it but I tripped and fell over onto it. The next thing I know I've got ants crawling all over me and they were in my hair, on my face, on my clothes, on my skin, on my - "

"Calleigh, breathe," Eric cut her off.

She nodded and moved her hands to her lap, shivering a little at the memory. She glanced over at Eric and shot him a glare. "Stop looking at me like that."

"Like what?" He raised his eyebrows.

"Like you're amused and sympathetic at the same time," she snapped.

Eric laughed and reached out to give her hand a gentle squeeze. "Want to know what I'm scared of?" he asked, feeling like he should do something to ease her embarrassment.

She kept her glare but arched an eyebrow, a little curious. She watched as he stood up and headed for the door.

"My sisters," he whispered over his shoulder as he left the room.

Calleigh smiled to herself as she watched him head for the break room. She couldn't help but feel that he was mocking her, but she laughed anyway, knowing that he didn't mean anything by it and with a final chuckle, she turned her attention back to the report.

**_/EC/ Stetler's day of 'fun' /EC/_**

Calleigh took a deep breath as the mini bus pulled to a stop outside Miami's _Big Cypress National Preserve_. It was a vast swampland that was essential to the health of the neighboring Everglades, supported the rich marine estuaries along Florida's southwest coast and was home to a diversity of wildlife. She kept telling herself that it would be too wet for ants, but then grimaced when she realised that ants were everywhere; _'she'd had personal experience of that.'_

"Okay team, I want you guys to stay here for a moment while I pop inside the building and sign us in," Stetler called from the driving seat. "To save you the trouble of asking, Wolfe, orienteering is about logic and observation," he added, seeing Ryan's face. He then glanced over at Calleigh; "Duquesne, don't touch anything."

Calleigh rolled her eyes as he got out and headed over to the reception building. She took off her seatbelt and stretched out, feeling a little uncomfortable in her seat and her gaze settled on Ryan who was tapping his foot against the floor of the mini bus, making no effort to hide his impatience.

"I used to go orienteering a lot," he began, noticing her puzzled stare. "As much as it pains me to tell you this, I used to go to Summer Camp when I was a kid and before you all start laughing, it was fun okay!"

Calleigh bit back her smile and nodded, trying to feign sincerity. She received a glare in response and she laughed, exchanging a knowing look with Eric; _'should they tell him?'_

"Hey, Ryan?" Eric began, still looking at Calleigh.

"What?" he replied.

"Did you know that this nature preserve is home to the Florida panther?" Calleigh finished, tearing her eyes away from Eric.

Ryan widened his eyes in horror and his mouth hung open for a moment; _'oh, God.'_

"Are they dangerous?" Valera whispered next to him, clearly just as worried as he was.

"They're pretty elusive," Calleigh shrugged. "But if you come into contact with one, then yeah, they're dangerous. Isn't that right, Stetler?" she called, as he opened the door to the mini bus so that they could all clamber out.

"What?" he eyed her carefully.

"Panthers; they can be dangerous can't they?"

"Ah, about that," he began as the team assembled in front of him. "There are a couple of things I need to talk to you about. There are few tips to remember if you happen to come into contact with one. The first is that you must try to fight back with all your might. Take special care to protect your neck and abdomen. Do _not_ play dead. If the animal attacks you from behind, try to throw it over your shoulders - "

"Oh, yeah, because that's gonna be easy!" Ryan muttered bitterly, suddenly very, very afraid.

Rick shot him a glare and continued. "The second thing to remember is that if you're not attacked but find yourself in what seems to be a dangerous encounter with a panther, try to make yourself look bigger and more threatening by holding out your arms and yelling in a loud and deep voice - "

"You can't be serious!" Ryan hissed as he widened his eyes.

"Shut up, Wolfe!" Rick barked. "As I was saying, waving a stick or another object can be enough to threaten the cat away. Always face it head on and make direct eye contact with it and allow it plenty of room to escape. Back away slowly, but do not run from the encounter; running only tells a cat you're something to be chased. Also, do not turn away from the animal and don't hunker down. Both of these actions may entice the panther to attack."

"And waving a stick in its face won't?" Ryan retorted.

"Can't we just shoot it?" Valera added.

Rick sighed irritably and gripped his clipboard tighter as he struggled to remain calm. "No, Valera, we cannot. The panther is an endangered species and, besides, what I've just told you is a 'just in case' plan. Consider yourself lucky if you even manage to see one," Rick replied as he placed a bag down on the floor. "I've forgotten the panther sticks, I'll be right back."

Calleigh watched him go and ran a hand through her hair; quite frankly, she couldn't care less about the panthers. It was the ants that she was afraid of. She knew that her fear was irrational because really, how often is it that you fall on top of an anthill? But she still couldn't shake the uneasiness she felt. The only reason she'd been able to get into that ant tank a few years ago was because she kept telling herself that she was doing it for the case; trying to find the evidence they needed to catch their killer.

She caught sight of Horatio and Tripp heading back to the mini bus to grab a drink of water and turned her attention to the left as Ryan, Valera and Natalia began to have a heated discussion about 'the dangers of this activity' and she smiled. Her gaze suddenly fell upon the bag that Stetler had left and she began to walk over to it, a little curious as to what was inside of it.

Eric watched as she knelt down and began to open the bag and he arched an eyebrow, knowing that she was thinking something and, sure enough, she turned to face him.

"Hey, Eric? Can I borrow your wrist watch for a moment?"

He eyed her curiously and removed it from his wrist, pausing before he handed it to her. "Why?"

She smiled and gestured for him to take a look inside the bag and he obliged, looking back up at her and shaking his head when he saw what it contained. He watched as she picked out three of the four items and pocketed them before she reached for his watch and dropped it into the bag, giving it a good shake once she'd done it.

"If I end up being his partner for this - "

"You won't," she cut him off and flashed him a smile. "Do you really think Stetler wants to be left alone with either one of us?"

He laughed and raised his eyebrows. "Good point. You think it's been long enough?" He gestured to the bag.

"Well, we'll have to hope so." She nodded to the rapidly approaching Stetler and removed the watch from the bag. She'd just managed to slip Eric the three objects that she still had in her pocket and back away as Stetler looked up.

"Right, I'll split you into pairs and then equip each pair with a map, a compass, a flare gun and a panther stick. Wolfe, you're with me, Horatio you're with Natalia, Valera you're with Tripp and Duquesne, you're with Eric," he glared at the last pairing.

He'd decided to try and adopt the policy of 'appeasement' when it came to Calleigh; she clearly didn't have a problem at being partnered with Eric and, therefore, hopefully wouldn't be so keen to hurt or humiliate him. He knew that it was a bit of a stretch, but after the day he'd had, he was willing to try anything so with a sigh, he began to hand out the various equipment.

"I'll help," Eric offered, hiding the three objects that Calleigh had passed him.

Stetler raised an eyebrow, but before he had a chance to say anything, Eric reached for the bag that contained the last remaining compass and walked away, handing one person in each pair a compass from his pocket.

Ryan wasn't sure whether to be relieved or not that he was with Stetler for this activity. He was aware that Rick knew what to do if a panther attacked, but he couldn't help but feel a little unsettled about the Calleigh and Eric pairing. He caught her sympathetic glance as Eric reached into the bag and handed him a compass and he tensed;_'was that look because he was with Stetler, or because she was going to do something? Oh, God.'_

Calleigh looked away when she saw Ryan's eyes widen and she bit her lip, feeling both amused and a little guilty. Ideas racked through her brain as she tried to come up with a way to ensure Ryan's safety, and she slowly made her way over to him as an idea formed in her mind. "Have you got your phone on you?" she whispered.

Ryan nodded.

"Keep it on silent and if you happen to find that you get lost, send me a text okay?" she breathed. Before he had a chance to say anything, she made her way back over to Eric, just as what she assumed to be a park ranger joined the group.

"Everyone, this is Matthew Taylor," Rick began, shooting a warning look at Valera. "He's going to send us off in staggered intervals and time each pair. The winners are whoever makes it round the course in the best possible time. Now, if you look at your map, you will see that there are various coloured dots on it. You must use your compasses to find these points; each one is marked by a coloured pillar. If you lift the lid up, you'll find a stamp that matches the colour and you must stamp your recording sheet so Matthew knows that you executed the course correctly. Any questions?"

The group remained silent and Rick nodded for Matthew to take over.

"Okay, you two," He gestured to Horatio and Natalia. "Your time starts, now!"

**_/EC/_**

Fifteen minutes later, Eric and Calleigh had been sent on their way, leaving Rick and Ryan behind. They'd just fallen into a comfortable silence when Eric felt Calleigh shiver beside him.

"You okay?" he asked, trying to hide his amusement.

She took a moment to pat the invisible tickle that she felt and she sighed. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

Eric laughed and reached for her hand as they continued to walk. "Calleigh, there aren't any ants on you. I promise."

She nodded and glanced down at the map, deciding to put the thought out of her mind. "Have you got the compass?" she asked.

Eric dropped her hand and passed it to her, waiting patiently as she matched it up with the map to double check that they were traveling in the right direction.

"We need to head west a little," she eventually observed.

"Well, as they say," he grinned and held out his arm to the left, "ladies first."

"I thought chivalry was dead?" she shot back, returning the smile.

He laughed and stepped in front of her, temporarily making her stop. "That was before I got what I wanted," he whispered as he closed the distance between them.

Calleigh stayed still as his head came closer and she flashed him a wicked smile, raising her eyebrows as she did so. She waited until the last possible moment before she brought a hand to his mouth, halting his attempt to kiss her. "You haven't got me, yet," she whispered back.

Eric sighed and stepped backwards. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?" he asked, echoing her earlier words.

She laughed and reached for his hand, tugging him in a westerly direction. "Well, you shouldn't have teased me about my problem with ants," she retorted simply.

Eric grinned and laced his fingers through hers. It was driving him crazy having to act so casually around her; he wanted nothing more than to whisk her off for an activity of their own and no, he didn't mean that as a sexual innuendo - although, that would be nice - but he hadn't even kissed her yet and he just wanted to spend some time where it was just the two of them with no plans to humiliate Stetler going on in the background.

"Do you think it will work?" he asked as his brain reminded him of the plan.

She looked back at him for a moment, a little confused about what he was talking about and then smiled when she realised. "That's a pretty hi-tech watch you've got there so hopefully the magnetic force should have been strong enough."

Eric glanced down at his specialised diving watch and nodded. "Yeah, I just wish I could see Stetler's face when he realises that his compass doesn't actually point to 'true north' anymore."

"You've got to love the power of magnets," Calleigh quipped. "I do feel a little sorry for Ryan, though. Hopefully they won't get _too_ lost."

Eric laughed and gave her hand a squeeze. "Imagine if he and Stetler actually do come face to face with a panther! I can just see it now, Rick trying to make himself look big while Ryan flails a stick around and - " Eric stopped as he felt himself tugged backwards by Calleigh's hand. He raised his eyebrows at her, asking her why she'd stopped and he frowned at how much she'd tensed up. It was only when he followed her gaze that he realised why; _'ah, this could be a problem...'_

Calleigh was trying her hardest to stay calm; there in front of her was a giant anthill just teeming with the little creatures that she hated so much. She cursed herself for feeling like such a girl and stepped closer to Eric, suddenly needing to feel safe. He reached for her other hand and forced her to look at him.

"Cal, it's okay. Just keep looking at me and I'll guide you around it."

She shook her head; _'there was no way that she was going anywhere near that thing.'_ She opened her mouth to tell him so but he cut her off with two words.

"Trust me."

She held his gaze for a moment until, finally, she nodded and allowed him to steer her past it. She closed her eyes as she imagined them crawling all over her and began to shudder involuntarily at the notion.

"Wolfe! Give me that damn map! I thought you said you'd done this before!" Stetler's voice suddenly boomed from nowhere.

"I have, Stetler! This is the spot on the map! The pillar should be here!" they heard Ryan yell back.

Calleigh opened her eyes and couldn't help but laugh. "Guess that means it worked," she grinned, temporarily forgetting about the anthill.

Eric returned the smile and held her gaze as he walked her around the last section of the hill. He'd just got her clear of it and dropped her hands when he felt his foot catch under a tree root and he braced himself as he fell backwards onto the mound. He began to wriggle as the ants encased him and he clenched his mouth shut as they tried to crawl into it; _'oh, this was not good...'_

* * *

Right, seems a good place to stop.

**Edit: Just a little science lesson in case I wasn't clear enough about what EC did. A compass needle points in the direction known as 'true north' and uses it's own magnetic field to do so. If you introduce a strong magnet, the compass' magnetic field is distorted, changing the direction of 'true north.' Wrist watches contain magnets and the seriously hi-tech ones like diving watches that have all the gadgets have stronger magnets; the stronger the magnet, the greater the change in direction of the compass needle and thus rendering the instrument useless. If you try to use it to follow a map or just to get some sense of bearing, it's going to lead you in the wrong direction.**

I'm off to go procrastinate or something.

Reviews very much appreciated.


	11. This is Not an Excuse to Get Intimate

Well, how about last night's episode? Aside from the fact that it looked like Cal was going to cry in every scene that she was in, it was classic CSI: Miami... "let's get all you E/C shippers hopes up and then do absolutely sod all about it." The writers have serious continuity issues! Although, I did have a thought today... if and when the writers finally do get their butts into gear and get our two favourite characters together, what the hell are we going to write about!?

Okay, rant over and onto the next Chapter.

Enjoy! x

* * *

**This is Not an Excuse to Get Intimate...**

* * *

Valera sighed and leant herself up against a tree as Tripp took a moment to study the map; they were looking for the third pillar but were having a hard time trying to find it. She allowed her eyes to wander around their surroundings and she gripped her panther stick tighter when she caught sight of something moving in the thicket to her left.

"Frank!" she whispered as she began to inch closer to him, all the while clutching her stick. "Frank!" she hissed louder when he didn't reply.

"What?" he snapped.

Valera reached for his arm and pointed in the direction of the rustling bushes. "Look!"

He rolled his eyes and arched an eyebrow; ever since Matthew had sent them on their way, Valera had already sworn that she'd seen a panther five times.

"I'm serious this time!" she hissed, seeing his skeptical glance.

He sighed and followed the direction of her gaze, tensing when he saw it too. "Give me the stick," he ordered, eyeing the object in her hand.

"Absolutely not!" she replied. Whilst she wasn't quite sure how waving a stick around in panther's face was going to help, it made her feel safer somehow and there was no way that she was about to give up the thing that might just save her life; _'no, not in a million years.'_

_**/EC/**_

Natalia was bored. She and Horatio were trying to find the fifth pillar, or at least he was; she couldn't care less. She sat herself down on a tree stump to rest her feet for a moment while he took out the map. Over the course of the day, she'd noticed that Horatio's fun side had come out and she'd never seen him like this; he always seemed so serious and dramatic and sure, his one liners could be funny but as far as she was aware, they weren't intentionally so. She knew he'd been through a lot, especially with Marisol's death and she was glad that Stetler had inadvertently brought some fun into the lieutenant's life.

"Ma'am," Horatio called, looking up from the map. "I think the pillar is just past that thicket," he gestured to an area of dense vegetation to his right. "I'm going to take a look. You okay here for a moment?"

Natalia nodded and went back to her thoughts as he strolled away. However much she hated Stetler and however much she hated this day, she couldn't help but notice that it had actually been somewhat worthwhile; she'd gotten to know a new side of Horatio, discovered that Valera was a serious flirt and she'd had a little fun at Stetler's expense. And then of course, there was the relationship between Eric and Calleigh; _'just what was going on there anyway?' _She dropped the panther stick for a moment so she could stretch and then froze when she suddenly realised something. She was alone in a swampland that was home to a wild cat and without a map, a compass or a flare gun; all she had was the panther stick.

"Horatio?" she called, sounding a little panicky. She whimpered when she heard no reply and she glanced over in the direction that he'd gone and in one quick movement, she picked the stick up and practically ran for the bushes.

_**/EC/**_

Ryan struggled to keep up with Stetler as the man marched ahead. The two had been bickering for ten minutes now and Ryan was becoming increasingly agitated. "Would you just let me see the God damn map, Stetler!" he yelled, realising that they weren't getting anywhere.

"No, Wolfe! It's your fault we're lost, I should never have given it to you in the first place!" Rick barked back.

Ryan sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose as he tried to stay calm. He was just about to shout when he suddenly remembered what Calleigh had said: _"If you happen to find that you get lost, send me a text okay?"_

He frowned as he tried to think of what she'd done, and how, and grimaced with his newfound understanding when he caught sight of Stetler holding the compass up against the map;_ 'how was he supposed to tell him that Calleigh had broken their compass?'_

**/EC/**

Calleigh froze as she watched the ants scurry over Eric. She was torn between feeling sympathetic and relieved; one on hand, she knew how horrific the experience was but on the other hand, she'd rather it be him than her. She wanted to help him, really she did, and she had every intention of doing so; just as soon as she could get her legs to work.

Eric grimaced as the ants found their way beneath his clothes. He was still a little shocked at what had just happened and his limbs hadn't begun to work yet. He suddenly became aware of Calleigh's hand in his as she tugged him up and his body kicked into life as he helped her haul him up. As soon as he'd climbed to his feet, she dropped the contact immediately and began to shake her arm about, trying to get rid of the ants that had jumped from him to her. He was tempted to laugh but changed his mind quickly when he realised he was in danger of falling prey to the old saying about having 'ants in your pants' and he quickly began to pat and brush them away.

Calleigh breathed a sigh of relief as the last ant was thrown from her hand and then whimpered when she felt one crawling along the underside of her forearm. "See!" she cried as she resumed her shaking. "I told you they were sneaky!"

Eric nodded his agreement as he swatted at his shirt. He could still feel them crawling _everywhere_ and he glanced over at Calleigh as she continued to wave her arm about, and he couldn't help but laugh.

"What?" she breathed as she gave a final jerk.

"Just you," he grinned back, wiggling about a little as the ants scurried over his body.

She widened her eyes and watched as he swiped at the back of his neck. "You're not freaking out at all about this?" she asked in disbelief.

"No," he replied simply. "I admit that I'm not particularly comfortable right now but," he paused to brush at a group on his arm. "It's kind of funny, don't you think?"

He laughed again when she shot him a look that said, _'this is a million miles from funny, Eric,' _and he turned around. "Could you get the ones off my back? I can't reach them."

"Um," she began hesitantly. "You know what? I've already helped you off of the anthill and I've just got the stragglers off _me_ so I'm sorry, Eric, but I'm going to have to say a resounding no."

"What happened to 'the best way to deal with fear is to face it'?" he challenged, echoing the words that she'd used when she'd climbed into the ant tank a few years ago.

He watched as she struggled with herself, and he knew that she was going to need a little more coaxing. "I did guide you safely around the ants, Cal, it's the least you can do," he pouted. "And, on the plus side, _I_ don't bite."

She sighed and bit her lip. She couldn't help but feel a little annoyed; not only had he used her own words against her and played the guilt card, he was right; she did owe him. "Okay," she grimaced and moved over to him. "You're going to have to lift your shirt off, though, so I can get to them."

Eric shot her a playful smirk over his shoulder as he did as she asked. "I thought you wanted to talk before we got to the nudity stage?" he teased.

"Shut up, Eric," she smiled, rolling her eyes as she began to tentatively swat at his back.

_**/EC/**_

Horatio sighed as he struggled to tear himself free from a tree root that seemed intent on trapping him there. He could see the pillar a few feet away and with a final tug, he broke away and began to pick his way through the vegetation which was rustling around him as he eased past it. He smiled triumphantly when he reached the pillar and he flipped the top open to get the stamp, and then once he'd found it, he stamped his recording sheet. He'd just managed to replace the stamp when he heard a shout from behind him but before he had a chance to turn around, something flew at him and he found himself stumbling backwards through the vegetation, wincing as his body made contact with the ground.

_**/EC/**_

Valera tensed as soon as the thing that had been rustling shot out and she rushed forward with her stick at the ready; she wasn't about to go down without a fight. She raised her stick and began to wave it around for all she was worth when she heard Tripp laugh behind her.

"Uh, Valera? What are you doing?"

She stopped and glanced down at the thing on the floor and widened her eyes at the sight; Horatio was lying on his back with Natalia on top of him. She dropped the stick immediately and her mouth hung open as she struggled to work out just why they were in that position; _'was that why the bushes had been rustling?'_ She grimaced as she considered the possibility and she glanced from Horatio to Natalia, and then back to Horatio.

"First Stetler and now Natalia!" she began. "Wow, H, you do get around! And Stetler thinks I'm the - "

"It's not what it looks like!" Natalia cut her off as she pushed herself off her boss.

Valera exchanged a smirk with Tripp. "No, course not," she teased. "I suppose you're going to say that you tripped and fell onto him."

"I did!" Natalia snapped. "I got my foot stuck in a tree root and tugged myself free a little too sharply. The next thing I know, I've collided with Horatio and have got you waving some stick around at me!"

"Yes, you'll have to forgive Valera," Tripp replied. "She thinks everything that moves is a panther; she nearly hit _me_ a while ago."

"Shut up, Frank!" Valera snapped, trying to hide the blush that was creeping across her face.

Tripp laughed and turned to Horatio. "So, what pillar number are you looking for? We're still stuck on number three."

"Well, Frank, we've just found five so we are now looking - " he paused to wipe the dust off of his sunglasses. "We are now looking for number six."

"How many of these things are there, anyway?" Natalia sighed, hoping they didn't have many more to find.

"Eight," Frank replied. "Which means me and Valera here need to get moving."

"Speak for yourself," Valera grumbled, reaching down to pick up her panther stick.

Horatio laughed and watched as his two colleagues started to walk away. "Ma'am, Frank," he nodded his goodbyes and put his glasses back on. "I'll see you later."

Natalia waited until they were gone before she turned to the lieutenant; she was still a little embarrassed about tackling him to the ground. "Hey, Horatio? I'm sorry about - "

"Ms. Boa Vista," he cut in and bent down to pick up the panther stick that she'd dropped in her fall. "Don't worry about it."

She returned his reassuring smile, groaning as she watched him stroll back into the thicket and she ran after him; she wasn't about to lose him again, especially now that she didn't even have the stick.

_**/EC/**_

Ryan growled as Stetler continued to lead them round in circles, and he took out his phone to see if Calleigh had replied to any of his messages yet; he must have sent her about fifteen by now. He sighed when he saw that she hadn't and he sat down, refusing to be led on yet another pointless search by Stetler.

"Wolfe! What are you doing?" Rick barked.

"We're lost," he replied simply.

"Well, if it hadn't been for you and your poor map reading skills, we wouldn't be in this situation," Rick snapped.

Ryan widened his eyes and got to his feet. He threw his panther stick across the ground and rounded on Stetler. "Okay, that's enough. I have had it up to here with you trying to blame me! Us being lost has nothing to do with my map reading skills and, besides, you're the one whose been leading us on a wild goose chase for the past half an hour! I suppose that it never crossed your mind that perhaps you're the one who put us here or that maybe, just maybe, our compass DOESN'T-ACTUALLY-WORK!" Ryan screamed.

"Don't be ridiculous, Wolfe!" Rick cried. "Of course our compass..." He trailed off when he suddenly remembered who it was that had given out the compasses; Eric. _'Oh, God.' _"What did she do?" he breathed.

"Who?"

"Duquesne! What did she do?"

Ryan froze. Whilst he wasn't comfortable lying for Calleigh, he was even less comfortable about what she might do if she found out that he'd told Stetler what she'd done and, besides, he still wasn't exactly sure himself; ever since he'd realised that she'd broken their compass, he'd been trying to work out how she'd done it. He also felt like he owed her; she had after all saved him from that muddy pool, and she was also the person who'd taught him all he needed to know about being a CSI. "I don't know what you are talking about," he eventually managed.

Rick growled and took a step closer, invading Ryan's personal space. "Wolfe," he began tightly, "if you don't tell me what - "

"Christ, Stetler!" Ryan cut in. "You've really got to let this obsession with Calleigh go. It's not healthy."

Rick's mouth hung open and he widened his eyes in disbelief. He was just about to say something when Ryan snatched the map out of his hand and glanced up at the sky. "How about we get back to this?" and before Stetler could reply, he continued. "Okay, the position of the sun says this way is north," he pointed to the left. "But according to the map, we need to head west which is that way," he pointed behind them and then reached for the panther stick.

Rick arched an eyebrow, a little impressed. He wasn't, however, prepared to let Ryan know that, and so he merely shrugged and snatched the map back. "Well, what are we waiting for?" he called over his shoulder as he marched away. "Let's go!"

Ryan sighed and he rolled his eyes. He wasn't surprised that Calleigh had spent the entire day trying to humiliate the man; '_Stetler really was an idiot.'_

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh had just managed to help Eric get rid of the last of the ants when she suddenly remembered what she'd told Ryan. She reached for her phone and raised her eyebrows at the number of messages that he'd sent her.

"What's up?" Eric asked as he swatted away a straggler.

"I told Ryan to text me if he and Stetler got lost so that I could try and help him, and he's sent me fifteen messages!"

Eric laughed and drew his arms across his chest. "Well, what could you do anyway? They've got a flare gun and a panther stick; I'm sure Ryan will be fine."

He watched as she bit her lip and looked away, clearly feeling a little guilty, and he reached out for her hands, giving them a gentle squeeze. "Come on, Cal, Ryan used to go to orienteering a lot remember? I'm sure he knows of other ways to determine which way is north, east, south or west." She opened her mouth to reply but he stepped closer and cut her off. "If you're worried about the panthers, you said yourself that they're pretty elusive."

She held his gaze for a moment before she eventually nodded, and she rolled her eyes when he flashed her a playful smile. He laughed and took another step towards her and she couldn't help but notice that he still had his shirt off and, as hard as she tried, she couldn't stop her eyes from wandering.

He raised his eyebrows and pulled her against him. "I never thanked you," he murmured. "For helping me to swat the ants away," he clarified, seeing her puzzled look.

"I guess they're not so bad," Calleigh shrugged.

Eric laughed and wrapped his arms around her. "Liar," he whispered as he leant down to kiss her; he'd nearly made it when a loud voice interrupted them.

"Wolfe! Are you sure that this is the right way?" Stetler's voice called from the vegetation to their left.

"Yes!" Ryan's voice shot back.

Calleigh jumped backwards from Eric and turned round just as Ryan entered the clearing. She flashed him a shy smile and bit her lip as he looked from her to a shirtless Eric, and then back to her again. Ryan arched an eyebrow and was about to make a comment when Stetler appeared behind him.

Stetler took one look at the scene in front of him and his eyes narrowed. "What the hell is going on here?" he barked.

Before either of them could reply, however, there was a rustle from the right and Valera and Tripp appeared. Valera smiled and looked Eric up and down, not bothering to hide her obvious appreciation of his body. "Not you two as well," she teased. "We caught Horatio and Natalia doing something similar earlier."

"What?" Rick asked, a little shocked. "I blame you for this!" he shouted at Valera.

She widened her eyes and held up her hands. "Me?" she cried in disbelief.

"Yes! If you hadn't have set such a bad example with Fabian, then no one else would have got the idea that it was okay to indulge in a little promiscuous - "

"Guys?" Ryan cut in.

"Shut up, Wolfe! I'm in the middle of - " Stetler stopped when he realised what Ryan was looking at; something was slowly making its way over to them.

"Is that," Valera hesitated, "a panther?"

"No one move," Rick breathed. "Remember what I said, um..." He trailed off as the cat stalked closer towards him.

Calleigh swallowed and took a moment to compose herself before her instinct took over and she began to think about their best plan of action. "Eric, pick up your shirt and hold it out flat above your head and Frank, unzip your jacket and hold it open; it will make you both look bigger and more threatening. Valera and Stetler, start waving your sticks." She paused for a moment and tried to ignore how ridiculous that sounded. "Ryan, you've got a pretty deep voice, you talk to it."

"What am I supposed to say?" he hissed.

"Anything you can think of!" she shot back. She glanced over to where her own panther stick was lying a few feet away, and decided that it would be too dangerous to try and reach for it, and so instead, she kept her eyes focused on the panther as the group sprung into action.

Valera was waving her stick around for all she was worth and she held her breath as the cat stopped and stared at them. Beside her, Stetler was flailing around just as much as she was and if she weren't so scared, she'd probably have laughed at how stupid she felt.

"GO-AWAY," she heard Ryan say to the panther. "WE-ARE-NOT-FOOD."

"Because that's going to work," Valera hissed sarcastically.

"ON-SECOND-THOUGHT, YOU-CAN-EAT-VALERA. NO-ONE-WILL-MIND."

"Ryan!" she yelled.

Calleigh fought the overwhelming urge to break eye contact with the panther and shoot them both her most intimidating glare. Instead, she kept her voice steady and tried her hardest not to blink.

"Stop it the both of you! This is not the time!" She was about to say something else when she saw the panther look away and start to turn around.

Ryan breathed a sigh of relief as the big cat slowly stalked away and back into the vegetation, and once he was satisfied that it was well and truly out of sight, he turned to face Rick. "Can we just get out of here? Just forget the exercise and go? We've already wasted a lot of time and we haven't even found the first pillar yet!"

Stetler swallowed as he waited for his fear to subside. As much as he disliked Calleigh, he'd been grateful for her quick thinking and he was a little surprised to find that she'd been listening to him at the beginning of the activity. He surveyed the group for a moment and noticed that Valera looked like she was struggling to decide if she was still scared, or seriously angry with Ryan. Frank was clearly in shock, Eric had finally put his top back on and Calleigh had reached out to place a reassuring hand on Ryan's still shaking arm.

"Okay," Rick finally breathed, still pretty shook up himself. "Let's get out of here." He glanced down at his watch and added, "We've run out of time anyway."

Calleigh gave Ryan's arm a final squeeze before she removed her hand and walked over to where her panther stick lay. She was just in the process of picking it up when Stetler called out to her. "Duquesne, you can, uh, you can lead the way." As much as he hated to put his trust in her, his compass clearly didn't work and, out of all of them, she was the one who had recovered the quickest. He also highly doubted that she would do anything when the rest of the group were still so shaken up.

She nodded and handed Ryan her stick as she reached for her map and compass, and then after a moment's observation, she led them all in a southeasterly direction.

_**/EC/**_

Horatio glanced at his watch impatiently and sat down next to Natalia. The two of them had finished the activity about fifteen minutes ago and Matthew was beginning to get a little concerned about the rest of the group.

"You say you saw two of your party out there?" he asked.

"Yeah," Natalia confirmed. "They were fine."

Matthew nodded and he drew his arms across his chest. He decided to give the remaining pairs another ten minutes before he sent out a search party.

"Hey, look, that's them," Natalia called and he followed the direction of her gaze.

"What happened?" he asked as the group approached.

"Well, for starters, we found out that we all suck at orienteering," Valera quipped.

"Speak for yourself," Ryan muttered bitterly. "The only reason Stetler and I couldn't get anywhere was because we had a dodgy compass." He shot a glare at Calleigh.

She offered him her most apologetic smile and silently promised that she would make it up to him somehow, before she turned to Matthew. "How rare is it to see a panther out there?"

"Very," he replied. "They're practically extinct. Why, did you see one?"

"We nearly got attacked by one!" Valera explained. "I really think you should rethink the whole 'not shooting them policy' because - "

"Shut up, Valera!" Rick barked. "I want you, Wolfe and Tripp in the mini bus now. The rest of you, I'd like a word with."

Calleigh exchanged a look with Eric and she ran a hand through her hair. She had a feeling that she knew what the conversation was going to be about and it was one that she'd really rather not have with Stetler.

"Thank you for your help, Matthew. I'll see you in reception in a minute," she heard Rick tell the park ranger and once he had gone and the mini bus doors had closed, Rick turned to the remaining members of the group. "Now, it has come to my attention that there has been some promiscuous behaviour going on here." He held up a hand as Natalia opened her mouth to explain. "I don't want to know exactly what or why, but I will say this; a team bonding day is not an excuse for you to get intimate with one another. Do I make myself clear?"

There was a stunned silence and he decided to take that as a 'yes'. He shot a lingering glare at Calleigh, still not sure whether she actually did anything to his compass or not, before he eventually waved them back onto the bus. He made his way over to reception to sign them all out and glanced to the side when he suddenly caught sight of a car pulling up, and he watched as a tall and greying man climbed out of the vehicle. He was just about to give the man a polite nod as he walked past and then froze in horror when he recognised the face;_ 'oh, God.'_

* * *

I could go on, but this Chapter is long enough. :p

(ladyd10, this is where that idea you inadvertantly gave me is about to begin...)

I'll see if I can find the time to update tomorrow.

Reviews very much appreciated.


	12. Four Hours and Twenty Nine Minutes

You guys all remember Chapter Six: Vertical Displays of a Horizontal Desire, right? Well, I was browsing around on youtube, as you do, and I found a little something that might interest you. There is a link to it in my profile.

Now about this Chapter. When I got this idea, it took me a while to figure out how to execute it without being terribly cliché because whilst they are convenient, they are neither creative nor original. So, after some consideration, I eventually came up with this. Think of it as a sort of interlude.

Enjoy! x

* * *

**Four Hours and Twenty-Nine Minutes...**

* * *

Stetler grimaced as he watched the man lock his car; out of everything that had happened to him today, this was up there with the worst. The head of Human Resources was standing a mere few feet away from him and he hadn't expected that he'd be checked up on. Rick felt his chest tighten as he grew more nervous; the day hadn't exactly run smoothly and the number of safety rules that had been broken had left grounds for the possibility of several serious lawsuits. He sighed as the man waved and began to walk over and he forced a tight smile in return.

"Ah, Rick!" the man called.

"Arthur," Stetler returned the greeting and reached out to shake his hand. "To what do I owe this pleasure?" he lied.

"You've nearly finished, I presume?" Arthur ignored the question, choosing to ask one of his own.

Rick nodded and gestured over to the mini bus. "Uh yeah, we were just about to head back to the lab now."

Arthur raised his eyebrows. He couldn't help but notice Rick's nervous appearance and he drew his arms across his chest as the man refused to meet his eyes.

"You didn't answer my question," Rick suddenly pointed out. "About why you're here."

"I wanted to know if the day had been a success," Arthur replied.

Rick frowned and shifted his weight uncomfortably. He glanced over at the mini bus and caught sight of Calleigh through the glass. "Yeah, a complete success," Rick lied, turning back to Arthur. "Wish we could have another day."

He squirmed as the man studied him for a moment, clearly trying to decide whether Rick was telling the truth or not, and he decided that it would be best to change the subject before he could be questioned further. "Couldn't you have just waited for my report? I mean, there's no reason why you had to come all this way."

"Oh, Rick, you know I don't care much for reports; too many facts and not enough opinions," Arthur grimaced. "I find you get the most _truthful_ picture through the art of conversation and, besides, sometimes it's nice to get out of the office and into the outdoors, don't you agree?" He raised his eyebrows.

Rick fought his sudden urge to laugh and he glanced back at Calleigh; quite frankly, the outdoors was overrated. He sighed and turned his attention back to Arthur again, trying to nod as enthusiastically as possible. He couldn't help but feel that there was another reason for Arthur's unexpected visit, and he was dreading to find out just what it was...

**_/EC/_**

Calleigh covered her mouth with her hand as a yawn crept in; spending the entire day coming up with ideas to humiliate Stetler was beginning to take its toll. She closed her eyes for a moment and felt Eric stretch out beside her as he struggled to get comfortable.

"Any idea how far we are from the lab?" he grumbled to her as he gave up.

Calleigh opened her eyes and shook her head, raising her eyebrows when she caught sight of Valera examining Eric with her eyes. She bit her lip as she tried to fight away the slight pang of jealousy that was beginning to creep in, before she eventually dragged her eyes away and gazed out of the mini bus window. She released a quite sigh as she thought back over the course of the day and she rested her head against the cool, hard glass. Her relationship with Eric had definitely shifted today - hell, she'd even risked ants for him! - and she nearly laughed when she realised that she had Stetler to thank for their newfound romance; all the activities he'd forced them to do had made it increasingly difficult for her to ignore the feelings that she had, and a smile tugged at her mouth as she decided that letting Eric in was one of the best things that she'd done in a while. She still needed to have 'the talk' with him of course, needed to lay down some ground rules because they had their professional relationship to think about.

"Where are you?" she heard Eric murmur beside her.

She lifted her head from the glass and turned to face him. "I was just thinking," she replied, continuing when he raised his eyebrows and shot her a questioning look. "We still haven't exactly discussed _us_."

"No," Eric smiled, making no attempt to hide just quite how pleased the word 'us' made him. "If you're not too tired, how about I buy you dinner once we get back?"

Calleigh flashed him a shy smile and reached for her seat belt. "I would love that," she murmured as she buckled herself in.

He nodded as he did the same and he held her gaze for a moment, another smile forming on his lips as both of them silently agreed that it was a date.

Natalia watched the exchange between her two colleagues and she arched an eyebrow, a little curious as to what was going on. She couldn't help but wonder what promiscuous activity they'd been up to, and inwardly groaned at her own embarrassing situation with Horatio. She nearly jumped when she saw that Calleigh had broken eye-contact with Eric to shoot her a questioning glance, and her thoughts raced as she relalised that she'd been caught staring. "So, what did you two do?" she asked, trying to pretend that she hadn't seen anything.

Calleigh frowned, clearly not following. "The 'promiscuous behaviour' that Stetler was referring to?" Natalia prompted.

Calleigh bit her lip and tried her hardest to prevent the blush that was creeping across her face. It wasn't like Stetler had actually seen anything and, besides, Eric had only had his top off for practical reasons...

"Oh, that?" she attempted to feign innocence. "Eric fell onto an anthill and I was simply helping him to get rid of the ants."

Natalia bit back her smile and arched an eyebrow; Calleigh could win an Oscar for her innocent performances.

"And Eric had his top off because...?" Valera cut in, shooting a smirk at Eric.

"What!" Natalia exclaimed, suddenly very interested.

Calleigh gave a nervous chuckle and forced a tight smile at Valera, trying to prevent herself from leaning over and claiming Eric as her own there and then, and she rolled her eyes when she realised that she was definitely jealous; '_she and Eric weren't even official yet!'_

"Nothing happened," she heard Eric speak for her. "I had ants everywhere and I took off my shirt so it was easier to remove them, that's all."

She held her breath and watched as both Natalia and Valera shot them both a scrutinizing look, and she merely shrugged in an attempt to feign indifference. She smiled when she saw Valera sigh and turn away, clearly a little disappointed that she hadn't been able to discover some sort of scandal, and then locked her eyes with Natalia as the woman continued to cling on.

"What about you and Horatio?" Calleigh asked, deciding to switch the focus. It had the desired effect; Natalia blushed and diverted her gaze to the floor and Calleigh bit back her smile when she caught sight of Valera's head whipping back round, suddenly interested in the conversation again.

"Contrary to popular belief," Natalia began, shooting a glare at Valera. "Our..."She hesitated as she tried to think of how to say it. "Our _apparently_ intimate position was purely the result of an accident."

"Yeah, she tripped and fell on top of him," Valera chimed in with a smirk.

Calleigh widened her eyes and laughed. She glanced towards the front of the bus where Horatio, Tripp and Ryan were deep in their own conversation and tried to imagine how embarrassed she'd feel if she'd found herself sprawled over their boss in what had obviously been a comprising situation. She was just about to say something when the mini bus doors slid open and Stetler poked his head in.

"Team? There's someone I'd like you to meet." He stepped aside to reveal another man. "This is Arthur Hewes, the head of Human Resources."

Calleigh eyed Rick curiously and bit back her smile when he shot her a glare that threatened serious pain if she tried anything.

"Lieutenant Caine!" Arthur suddenly cried when his gaze settled on Horatio. "I wasn't sure that you'd be participating today."

"Well, Arthur," Horatio smiled and cocked his head to the side. "You know how I always like to keep an eye on my team."

The man nodded and beamed back at his old friend and he then took a moment to survey the rest of the group. "I trust that you've all found this day worthwhile and have enjoyed yourselves?"

Rick squirmed in the uncomfortable silence that followed as the team exchanged a knowing look. "You'll have to excuse them," he laughed nervously. "They're a little tired out... it's been a long day."

Arthur arched an eyebrow and turned back to Rick, clearly suspicious. "Yes." He allowed his gaze to linger on Stetler for a moment. "Well, that's why I'm here." He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out an envelope. "The department has decided to thank you all for coming in on your day off and for being such great sports, so we've booked you up for an additional activity; one we think you'll enjoy. We've taken the liberty of arranging some accommodation for you and - "

"Accommodation?" Ryan suddenly cut in, not liking where this was going. "Why?"

"You're heading out to Orlando and the activity doesn't begin until tomorrow," Arthur replied tightly, a little annoyed at the interruption. "We want it to be a surprise, however, and so this envelope contains a list of vague instructions."

Ryan widened his eyes in disbelief; just when he'd thought the day couldn't get any worse, it had. "But Orlando is at least a four hour drive from uh," he hesitated. "Where are we?"

"Big Cypress National Preserve," Calleigh replied tightly, still struggling to come to terms with the fact that not only were they going to have to spend another day with Stetler, Arthur actually believed that he was doing something nice for them. She exchanged a wistful look with Eric and sighed; _'there goes dinner.'_

Rick shot Ryan a glare and forced an uneasy smile at Arthur, suddenly wishing that the ground would open and swallow him up. This day had practically killed him, quite literally, in fact and he felt certain that there was no way that he could survive another one, but he knew that there wasn't any way around it unless he came out and told Arthur the truth; that the day had been one disaster after the other. He was too proud to do that, however, and he sighed as Arthur handed him the envelope.

"Four hours and twenty-nine minutes, to be exact," he heard the man tell Ryan. "Which is why you need to get going right away if you want to get there in time for dinner."

"But we don't have a change of clothes or anything!" Valera cried, clearly just as unimpressed as the rest of the team.

"Ah, well, the hotel will have all of the amenities you need. As regards to the clothes issue, if you happen to pass a Wal-Mart on the way, stop off and as long as you hold onto your receipts, the department will reimburse you when you get back," Arthur beamed.

Calleigh ran a hand through her hair and rested her head back against her seat. As much as she wanted to hate the man for this unexpected and unwelcome surprise, the genuine smile on his face was making it very hard to do so. She briefly considered kicking up a fuss and telling Arthur _exactly_ how the day had gone, and then sighed when she realised that not only would that be the unprofessional option - especially given all the trouble he'd gone to - it would also put her in danger of being reprimanded over her conduct; there were only so many times that she could feign innocence about all of the things that had happened to Stetler.

"Anyway," she heard Arthur say. "I'll let you guys get off. Have a nice time and enjoy your treat!"

Ryan laughed bitterly and rubbed his eyes as soon as the man had stepped away from the bus.

"I'll um," he heard Stetler begin. "I guess I'll go sign us out and then we'll get on our way."

He watched as Rick hesitated, clearly very shocked about the news that Arthur had just delivered, before he eventually came to his senses and headed over to the reception building.

"Did that really just happen?" Ryan asked, a little bewildered; _'had Arthur really called this a treat?'_

"I really wish I could tell you no," Valera whimpered, a little disgusted about the fact that she was going to have to buy her clothing from a Wal-Mart store, and even that depended on whether they actually passed one or not; _'what the hell were they going to do in Orlando, anyway?' _She grimaced as a thought popped into her head. "If he's sending us off to the Animal Kingdom or any of those theme parks then I am personally going to hunt him down and kill him, so help me God I will!"

Calleigh couldn't help but laugh because, honestly, the alternative was to cry. And that was something that she didn't do, period. She'd like to think that Valera's idea of what they were doing was pretty far-fetched, but after everything that had been thrown at them today, she knew anything was possible. She smiled as the group began to swap other insane ideas and glanced out of the window, grimacing when she caught sight of Stetler leaving the reception building and heading back over to the bus, and she decided that her only consolation was that he looked just as annoyed about the situation as the rest of them, probably more so even.

Rick emitted a low growl as he climbed into the driver's seat and he practically threw the envelope down on the dashboard. "Everyone make sure you're buckled up!" he barked over his shoulder as he strapped himself him. "Horatio, there should be a map in there." He gestured to the glove compartment on the passenger side. "I'm going to need you to direct me."

Ryan exchanged a pained look with Valera as Stetler reached for the ignition and the bus roared into life; _'this was one road trip that he certainly _didn't_ want to take...'_

**_/EC/_**

Eric sighed and stretched his arms in front of him as he saw what must have been the millionth road sign pass them by. They'd been on the road for at least two hours now, and had been in near silence for most of the journey, everyone still sulking about Arthur's 'treat'. He heard Calleigh sigh softly beside him and he turned his head and smiled at the sight; despite the jerky movements of the bus, she'd somehow managed to fall asleep a little while ago and her hair had fallen playfully around her face. He took a moment to watch her before he reached out and ran his fingers through it, and his smile grew when she instinctively leaned into his touch and her head came to rest on his shoulder.

"Can we stop please?" he heard Valera ask Stetler. "I really need the loo!"

"Well, unless you want to go in a bush, Valera, no we can't," he shot back.

Valera actually considered the option for a moment, before she eventually grimaced and settled herself back into her seat; _'she'd never wanted to see a Wal-Mart so badly in her entire life.'_

"How much longer until we reach Orlando?" she whined.

"Valera, if you're going to start that then you can get out and walk right now!" Rick replied, a little more aggressively than was really necessary.

Eric laughed when he heard her mutter a few obscenities, and he turned his attention back to Calleigh. She looked so peaceful and, dare he say it, angelic. He smiled when he realised how ironic that sounded since everything that she'd done today suggested that she was anything but.

"Rick..." Horatio began dramatically, "Rick there's a big Wal-Mart coming up on your left."

"Thank God!" Valera squealed and she peered out of the window in search of it. She began to fidget impatiently as the strain on her bladder reached breaking point, and she practically threw herself out of the bus once it had come to a halt and ran for the toilets.

"Everyone's got fifteen minutes!" Stetler called after her.

"You really expect us to find new outfits in fifteen minutes?" Ryan asked in disbelief.

"Quit being a girl, Wolfe! This day isn't about fashion; no one cares what you look like!" Rick replied.

"I do!" Ryan shot back as he climbed out of the mini bus after Natalia and the two of them headed into the building.

Eric felt Calleigh stir beside him and he glanced down just in time to see her eyes flutter open. She flashed him a lazy smile as she stretched out, and sat up to get a better look at their surroundings, widening her eyes when she saw where they were. "How long have I been asleep?"

"Just under an hour," Eric smiled as he undid his seat belt and began to clamber out of the mini bus. "Come on, let's go do some shopping."

**_/EC/_**

Half an hour later, much to Rick's annoyance - "I said fifteen minutes people!" - the team had finally reassembled back on the bus. Stetler widened his eyes when he caught sight of the four bags that Valera had come back with, and he let out an irritated sigh.

"What the hell is all that, Valera?" he snapped.

"Just some essentials," she defended.

Rick closed his eyes and shook his head in disbelief, deciding that it was probably best if he didn't inquire further, and he missed the knowing look that Valera exchanged with Calleigh. Then with another sigh, he reached for the ignition and they continued onto their destination.

**_/EC/_**

Calleigh gazed out of the window as tree after tree and road after road passed them by. She felt Eric wriggle in his seat beside her and she shot him a questioning look.

"I want to get off," he groaned.

She flashed him a sympathetic smile, completely understanding where he was coming from; she was beginning to feel a little restless herself, and she reached for his wrist and pulled it to her so she could glance at the time, smiling when she saw that they didn't have much longer to go. "Hey, Stetler?" she called. "Where are we staying?"

"No idea," he replied over his shoulder. "Horatio, have a look in the envelope. All the details are in there."

"You really do need to work on your courtesy, Rick," he snapped, a little grouchy from all the traveling. "A simple please would be nice." Without waiting for a reply, he reached for the envelope and scanned the paper until he found what he was looking for. "The Grand Bohemian Hotel."

"Have we got a room each?" Valera asked, suddenly interested.

"We've got one three room, two twin rooms and one single room," Horatio replied.

"Right, Ryan and Eric, you can share as can Tripp and Horatio. The ladies can have the three room and I'll take the single," Stetler barked.

"Why do you get the single room?" Valera moaned.

"Because after the day that I've had to endure, I deserve it!" he growled back, clearly a little bitter about everything that he'd been through.

Calleigh couldn't help but chuckle to herself and she returned to looking out of the window. She caught sight of a signpost that showed the name of their hotel and was just about to say something when Stetler, already a step ahead, swerved the bus in the new direction. She continued to stare out of the window until the building came into view and she turned her head to exchange an appreciative look with Eric. The hotel was huge and, from what she could tell, there had to be at least fifteen floors. The glamorous exterior oozed luxury and she began to perk up, suddenly feeling that perhaps Arthur really had done a nice thing for them.

The bus drew to a halt and the group slowly made their way off of it, a little shocked at how impressive the hotel looked.

"How much do you think this cost?" Valera whispered, feeling like she didn't deserve to be in a three-mile radius of the building, let alone right on it's front step.

"A lot," Ryan breathed back.

"Okay, let's all get inside. You can wait in the lobby while I sort out the rooms and then once I give you your keys, you can go and do what you like," Rick sighed. He really didn't care anymore; all he wanted was to be as far away from Calleigh as possible and to just collapse into a bed and hope that his had all been some kind of really, really bad dream. _'If only...'_

**_/EC/_**

Valera squealed and began to jump about when she opened the door to her room. Calleigh exchanged a smile with Natalia as they watched Valera run for the nearest bed and throw herself down onto it.

"How amazing is this!" she exclaimed as she buried her face into the pillows and then, without giving them a chance to reply, she pushed herself up and ran into the bathroom, emitting another squeal when she saw it. "I have first dibs on the shower!"

Calleigh laughed and moved over to the bed closest to the window. She placed her Wal-Mart bag on the end of it and glanced at the clock on the table.

"What time is it?" Natalia yawned, noticing Calleigh's glance.

"Eight-thirty," she replied, smiling as an extremely excited Valera emerged from the bathroom. "Did you manage to get everything?" She gestured to the four carrier bags that Valera had. She'd been reluctant to get them herself, worried that Stetler might have demanded to check her bags - it wasn't like he didn't have a reason to be paranoid, after all.

"Of course," Valera grinned. "You still haven't explained what they're for, though."

"I'll tell you after dinner." Calleigh flashed her a dangerous smile as she stood up and headed for the door. "You guys coming?" Valera eyed her curiously before she exchanged a look with Natalia and the two of them nodded.

Calleigh opened the door for them and followed them out of the room, trying to hide her amusement as she did so. As soon as she'd seen the items in the Wal-Mart, she'd come up with a new idea; just because they weren't in Miami anymore didn't mean the fun had to stop. But her new plan for Stetler could wait. Right now, she was hungry and in serious need of some food. She made a mental note to find Eric at some point tonight as well for that long over-due talk, and she smiled at the thought of his name; maybe Arthur's surprise wasn't so bad after all...

* * *

Who knows? Maybe I'll give you guys a kiss in the next chapter...

Now I do have a question for you all. I'm not sure how much longer I can keep this story funny before it goes stale because there's only so many times that I can humiliate Stetler, right? I do, however, have a handful of activities left, but my question is this: do you want me to start bringing this story to a close now, or carry it on for a little longer? I'd really appreciate it if you'd let me know.


	13. Finding That Deeper Emotion

To kiss or not to kiss: that is the question.

Thanks to everyone that reviewed the last chapter (as well as all of the others.) It seems that the general consensus is that you want me to continue for a bit longer. I had been thinking about wrapping it up within the next two chapters because, honestly, the 'humiliating Stetler' idea was only meant to be a sub-plot to the EC romance, but depending on how I feel, there may be a few more chapters left. Whatever happens, though, I'm not going to turn this into some never-ending rampage.

Oh, I should tell you that the Grand Bohemian Hotel is actually a real hotel in Orlando and, therefore, all the rooms that I use in this chapter are real, too - including the oddly named _Klimt Rotunda _bar_. _I did make one change, though, but I'll tell you at the end because I don't want to give anything away.

Enjoy! x

* * *

**Finding That Deeper Emotion...**

* * *

With a satisfied sigh, Stetler flopped himself down onto his bed and smiled into the duvet; '_he had a king room all to himself!'_ He took a moment to rest his eyes before he pushed himself up and wandered into the bathroom, widening his eyes in appreciation at the huge jacuzzi bath that was there. He moved over to the mirror and rubbed his face, noticing how tired he looked – although that wasn't surprising after the day he'd had - and he let out a growl when he thought of Calleigh. He was just about to head back into the bedroom when he caught sight of a leaflet on the bathroom counter and he picked it up, a smile tugging at his mouth when he saw something of particular interest...

**_/EC/_**

Eric had just stepped out of his room when he heard laughter coming from down the hallway, and he grinned as Calleigh, Natalia and Valera came into view. "You heading for the restaurant?" he asked as they drew nearer.

Calleigh returned the smile and nodded. "Yeah, you coming?"

"I'll meet you guys down there. I promised Ryan I'd wait for him," Eric replied and rolled his eyes. "He's still preening himself in front of the mirror. Save me a seat?"

"Of course," she laughed "See you in a bit."

Valera arched an eyebrow as her two colleagues held each other's gaze for a moment, and she exchanged a look with Natalia, suddenly sensing a potential scandal. Before she could say anything, however, Calleigh began to walk again and with a final curious glance at Eric, she followed after her.

Eric smiled as he watched Calleigh go - swaying her hips that little bit extra because she knew that he was watching - and once she'd disappeared from view, he poked his head back round his door. "Ryan!" he yelled. "Hurry up, I'm starving." He laughed when he heard Ryan grumble, and he leant against the wall of the hallway, drawing his arms across his chest as he did so; _'just what was Ryan doing in there, anyway?'_

**_/EC/_**

Valera squealed when she clapped eyes on the _Boheme restaurant_. Extravagant lights hung from the ceiling and everything had an expensive wooden finish. A quartet were playing on a stage in the corner, and she sighed wistfully as the maître d' showed them to one of the various booths, the soft, calming music washing over her.

"Thank you," she heard Calleigh say to the man as he handed her a menu, and Valera nodded her appreciation as he handed her one, too.

"How amazing is this?" she whispered once he'd gone, a little awe-struck.

"Very," Natalia confirmed as she began to scan the menu. Her eyes widened at the selection, and she felt her heart sigh blissfully when she caught sight of a dish that sounded particularly delicious.

"What does _Dulce de Leche _mean?" she heard Valera ask.

"It's Spanish for 'Candy of Milk'," Calleigh replied, "It's a milk based syrup, tastes like warm caramel." She looked up when Eric appeared and sat down in front her, and she flashed him a smile.

"I finally managed to drag Ryan out of the bathroom," Eric teased as he watched the other man sit down in the seat next to Natalia. "I'm surprised he didn't come out wearing make-up or something."

"Well, forgive me for feeling a little out of place in arguably one of the most extravagant hotels in Downtown Orlando," Ryan snapped. "I mean, I'm wearing a track suit!" He rolled his eyes as the group began to laugh, and he decided to change the subject. "Are Frank and Horatio joining us?"

"I don't know," Calleigh answered, frowning down at the menu as she tried to decide what she wanted. "I haven't seen them since we left the lobby."

"I wonder what Stetler's doing?" Valera asked with a laugh.

"After the day he's had? He's probably taken one giant sleeping pill and passed out," Eric grinned, exchanging a look with Calleigh. "You finished with that?" He gestured to the menu in her hands.

"Um," she hesitated as she considered ordering one of two dishes. "Sure," she smiled, finally reaching a decision, and she passed him the menu.

Natalia shook her head politely at the maître d' when he glanced in their direction to see if they were ready to order and, after a small nod, he turned to speak with a couple that had just approached him. She waited patiently for Eric and Ryan to decide what they wanted, exchanging a knowing look with Calleigh when they caught sight of Valera's appreciative glances at the various male waiters that were bustling about the restaurant; _'was there anyone she didn't find attractive?'_

**_/EC/_**

Stetler sighed happily as he felt warm hands slide up his back; as soon as he'd found the leaflet, he'd phoned room service and asked for a masseuse to come up, and he was currently lying face down on a table, wearing nothing but a towel around his waist as the petite woman worked on his muscles.

"You are very tense, Sir," he heard her murmur, and he groaned as she hit a particularly tight knot in his shoulder. "Have you had a stressful day?"

He laughed bitterly, wincing as she concentrated on massaging away the knot and he sighed; _'the term 'stressful day' didn't even come close.'_

**_/EC/_**

Calleigh placed her knife and fork down and took a moment to survey the other diners. They were all dressed up in suits and evening dresses, and she smiled when she realised how ridiculous her table must look in their grubby attire, rolling her eyes when she noticed the disapproving glance that the maître d' shot their way; _'she'd never cared too much for snobbery.' _She felt a blush creep in when she felt Eric staring at her, and she turned her head to look at him. A smile tugged at her mouth as she held his gaze for a moment, and she widened her eyes at him and jerked her head to the door; '_she wanted to talk_.' He nodded back at her, but was forced to break eye contact when their waiter began to stack up the plates.

"Will you be wanting dessert?" the man asked the group.

Valera flashed him a flirtatious smile and arched an eyebrow suggestively, but before she could say anything, Natalia spoke up. "Uh, no we're fine, thank you," she replied firmly, rolling her eyes at Valera's put out look. The waiter nodded and shot a shy glance Valera's way as he lifted the plates up and walked back over to the kitchen.

Calleigh laughed at the exchange and flexed her hands as she tried to think of a way to excuse herself and, with a stretch, she stood up.

"You going back to the room?" Natalia asked her.

"Actually," Calleigh hesitated and glanced at Eric, knowing that she had to make sure the next part of her sentence didn't sound like an invitation for the rest of the group to join them. "I'm going to go and have a look around the hotel, while we're here and all..." She trailed off, hoping that the others wouldn't want to tag along, grimacing when she heard Valera's reply.

"Sounds like a good idea," Valera smiled as she stood up as well. "Maybe we'll find some sort of dark secret hidden away somewhere."

"Oh, don't be so dramatic, Valera," Natalia rolled her eyes as she too, got up from the table.

Calleigh stifled a sigh, trying to hide her annoyance, and she forced a tight smile before she led the two women out of the restaurant, closely followed by Eric and Ryan. She was going to have to lose them somehow; _'or else she and Eric might never have that talk...'_

**_/EC/_**

Ryan yawned as Calleigh led the group past various rooms, and his ears pricked up when he heard the sound of jazz music on his left. He shot a casual glance in the direction of the room and stopped dead at the sight; _'what the - ?'_

"Uh, guys?" he called, his eyes never leaving the saxophone player. He waited for the group to assemble around him and he heard Valera gasp.

"Is that Horatio?" she whispered, a little shocked. "Where on earth did he get that saxophone!"

Calleigh widened her eyes and smiled as she watched their boss work the crowd. He was actually pretty good, and she laughed when she realised that he even played an instrument with his body at a sideways stance and, of course, he'd put his sunglasses on. No one in the room seemed to be questioning it, however; it was common for blues and jazz players to wear them; apparently it completed the 'image' somehow. She suddenly caught sight of Frank sitting at the bar, and she raised her hand in a wave. He grinned and held his drink up in his greeting before he took a sip and turned to watch as Horatio's act reached a climax. Calleigh followed his gaze and laughed as the lieutenant lifted the sax up and played the final note. And she couldn't help but shake her head in disbelief; _'this day was just one strange event after the other.'_

As the sound died away, she glanced at the rest of the group and, noticing that they were all still pretty shocked at what they'd just witnessed, she reached for Eric's hand and tugged him backwards and through a door on their right, just catching Valera's words as she slipped it shut. "Is it weird that I found that sexy?"

**_/EC/_**

Eric smiled and watched as Calleigh walked into the middle of the room and began to look around, clearly impressed at what she was seeing. They'd stumbled into what appeared to be an art gallery and he raised his eyebrows, a little confused as to why the hotel had one, but he pushed the thought out of his mind and moved over to her, reaching for her hand and spinning her round into him. "Guess those dance moves Fabian taught me have stuck," he grinned playfully when she arched an eyebrow.

She laughed and placed her hands on his chest, unconsciously thumbing at the material of his shirt. "What do you think this room is for?" she asked, gesturing around at the paintings on the walls.

Eric shrugged and took a moment to study one in particular, just behind her head. He frowned when he thought he recognised it and gently released Calleigh so he could get a better look.

She came to stand next to him and followed his gaze to the artwork. It was a painting of an untouched beach, no deck chairs, parasols, ice cream stands; nothing. A young couple were sitting on the sand, their bodies facing one another and Calleigh shot Eric a puzzled look. "What's wrong?" she inquired.

He tore his gaze away and looked back her confused face. "I just thought I'd seen it before, that's all," he smiled, elaborating when she raised her eyebrows. "Mari, uh," he hesitated, still finding it hard to talk about her after her death. "She loved artwork, and when she was diagnosed with cancer I helped her compile a list of all the pieces she wanted to see before..." He trailed off.

Calleigh offered him a reassuring smile and she placed her hand gently on his arm. She knew how difficult it had been for both him _and_ Horatio when Marisol had been killed, and she waited patiently for Eric to continue.

"Anyway, there was a similar painting that I took her to see," he finished, smiling wistfully at the memory. "You know, I could never see what the big attraction was."

He was quiet for a moment, and Calleigh silently stepped closer to him in support, knowing that he just needed her to listen. She heard Eric sigh and allowed him to pull her in front of him, drawing her back against his chest as he slid his arms around her waist. "She used to laugh and tell me that I wasn't _'__cultured enough'_ or that I _'__needed to learn to appreciate the finer things in life.'_ I told her that all art looked the same; just a doodle on one canvas after another, and she rolled her eyes and told me that art meant different things to different people."

"What did it mean to her?" Calleigh murmured as Eric leant his chin on her shoulder.

"She said that it wasn't necessarily the paintings that she liked; it was what they allowed her to do. Take this one, for instance." He gestured to the painting in front of them. "Those two figures are deep in conversation, but we don't know what about; it's secret. Marisol used to love thinking up stories to fit the moods of the artwork that she'd see. She called it _'__finding that deeper emotion' _and _'__widening your eyes to the deeper meaning.'"_

Calleigh smiled and allowed her gaze to linger on the painting. She noticed the woman had her head tilted towards the ocean with what looked like a playful smirk on her face while the man looked amused, if a little puzzled. "What do you think she's just said to him?" she asked.

Eric was quite for a moment as he considered her question, before he eventually shrugged and laughed softly into her hair. "Who knows?" He paused to turn her body around to face him. "Personally, I'm more interested in what _you_ want to say to _me_."

She flashed him a shy smile and opened her mouth to speak, but the door swung open and she jumped backwards just in time to see a concierge walk through it. He shot them a stern glare and turned his nose up when he saw them. "The gallery is closed," he snapped. "Come back in the morning."

Calleigh bit her lip, trying to stifle her overwhelming urge to laugh; she suddenly felt like she was back in high school and with a polite smile, she reached for Eric's hand and tugged him out of the room. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that Ryan, Valera and Natalia were no longer stood outside, and she grinned when she heard Eric laugh. "Come on." She pulled at his hand again. "Let's go find somewhere a bit more private."

Eric smiled and allowed her to lead him away, glancing across the hallway just in time to catch sight of Horatio picking up the saxophone again in the opposite room;_' now that__ was something he'd never expected to see...'_

**_/EC/_**

Valera emitted a loud 'huff' as she threw herself down into one of the many armchairs in the hotel lobby. She was a little annoyed that Eric and Calleigh had slipped off, not just because she thought it rude, but also because now she wouldn't be able to spy on them. Over the course of the day, she'd watched as they'd been hot and cold with one another and she was intrigued to know what was behind it all. She heard Ryan yawn beside her and she turned to face him just as he stood up. "Where are you going?" she asked.

"Off to bed," he sighed, stretching his arms. "I'm tired and I'm grouchy."

"I think I'll join you," Natalia yawned as she stood up. She froze when she realised what that sounded like, and tried to fight away the blush that was rapidly creeping in. "I mean not _join you_, join you; just head back with you to our separate rooms."

Valera arched an eyebrow and glanced between her two colleagues, smirking when she noticed that Ryan too, had turned a violent shade of red.

Natalia sighed and looked away, squirming a little at the tense silence, and she rolled her eyes when she caught sight of Valera's suggestive look. _"Not one word,"_ she mouthed, and before the woman had a chance to reply, she strode towards the elevator.

Ryan dug his hands into his pockets and swayed on his feet as he struggled to think of something to say and, eventually deciding that he couldn't, he gave Valera a shy smile and ran to catch Natalia up.

Valera sighed wistfully as she watched the two of them go; she briefly considered following them, but she still thought it was a bit early and she found herself wondering if Horatio and Tripp had gone up to bed yet. She decided to see if they were still in the _Klimt Rotunda_ bar, hoping that they could keep her company for a while because it wasn't everyday that you got put up in a luxury hotel, and Valera intended to enjoy every last bit of it; _'even if that meant she couldn't remember anything in the morning…'_

**_/EC/_**

Stetler clenched his teeth as his masseuse began chop at his back with her hands, and he winced when she hit another tight knot. He let out a groan when she paused to take care of it, crying out in pain when she probed at it a little too painfully. "I thought massages were supposed to relax you!" he moaned. "Not make you want to scream in agony." He heard the woman let out an irritated sigh as she dug in again and he bit back his yell.

"I'm sorry, Sir, but I promise you that this is for your own good," she soothed. "I'm surprised you can move with this much tension in your back!"

Rick grunted and braced himself for another jab of pain as her hands returned to their rolling and rubbing, and he found himself regretting calling her up here in the first place; _'he should have just taken one giant sleeping pill and gone straight to bed.'_

**_/EC/_**

Eric shot Calleigh a questioning look as she pulled them into the elevator and pressed the button for the roof. She flashed him a playful smile and leant back against the rail while she waited for them to start shooting upwards. "I doubt there's anyone up there at this time," she explained.

He nodded and glanced down at his watch, a little surprised to find that it had gone ten-thirty already. He drew his arms across his chest and he couldn't help but smile to himself, knowing that they were about to have the _'us'_ talk.

"What?" she asked, noticing his growing smile, but before he could reply, a soft _ding_ interrupted them and the elevator doors slid open.

"Wow," Eric breathed, gazing at the sight in front of him. He was looking at a roof top pool complete with a Jacuzzi, statues, shrubbery and lights that glowed all around it. A white marquee was situated by the poolside and a smattering of tables and chairs had been placed under it. He saw Calleigh walk over to the edge of the roof and he followed her, resting his palms on the creamy white, marble wall. He widened his eyes when he realised that he could see all across the city and he took a moment to soak up the view.

Calleigh stirred beside him and turned round to lean her back against the wall. She flashed him a smile and reached down to take off her shoes and once she'd done so, she moved over to the pool and sat down on the edge so that she could dangle her legs in it.

Eric chuckled and did the same, and the two of them sat in silence for a moment, just listening to the gentle lapping of the pool as the lazy water rippled in the warm breeze. She bit her lip when he reached for her hand and, with a gentle sigh, she turned to face him. "I'm not really sure how to start," she murmured truthfully.

Eric smiled and nodded, just as unsure as she was, but he knew that he was likely to be the more open of the two and so he decided that it would probably be best if he began the conversation. "Well," he hesitated, searching for words, and he laughed at how ridiculous he felt. He grinned when she let out a soft chuckle and ran a hand through her hair, clearly feeling just as silly as he was, and he pushed his nervousness aside as he opened his mouth to speak again.

"Okay, well, we both know that I like you and that you like me," he began, continuing when she arched an eyebrow. "And we both know that we want _this._" He gestured to the both of them. "I've just known it a while longer than you have."

Calleigh stared back at him for a moment before she shook her head and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. "No," she replied softly. "You just accepted it before I did." She returned her gaze to the water as she considered what to say next. "I really do want this to work," she began. "But we can't ignore that we both work together."

Eric sighed and slipped his arm round her waist, pulling her closer to him. "I already told you that I'd switch to the night shift," he murmured against her hair.

"Yeah, you did," she smiled. "But you won't. It's not fair."

"So what do you suggest we do?" Eric asked, hating that everything had to be so complicated.

Calleigh bit her lip as she thought about the question; the way she saw it, they had three options. The first was to try and hide their relationship and just hope that they'd both be able to fool everyone, but she knew that was a bad idea and she didn't feel comfortable about lying to Horatio. The second option was to just take each day one step at a time and adopt the 'if they find out, they find out' attitude - but then they'd still have to deal with Stetler at some point. And so it was with that thought, that she eventually decided that the third option was the best way to go.

"I think that we should keep our relationship a secret until we get back to Miami. Then we can talk to Horatio without Stetler hovering around and try to come up with a way to convince Rick that we won't let _'us'_ get in the way of work."

Eric was quite for a moment as he digested what she'd just said. As far as he was concerned, he didn't really mind how she wanted to deal with their professional relationship; he was still reeling from the fact that they now had a romantic one, and he was happy to go along with her wishes, but he laughed when a thought crept into his mind. "Well, if that fails," he began, flashing her a playful smile. "You could always blackmail Stetler and promise not to humiliate him ever again."

She returned his grin and removed his hand from her waist so she could lie back against the cold stone of the poolside, and she emitted a satisfied sigh, suddenly feeling like a weight had been lifted. She looked up at Eric as he drew a lazy circle in the water with his leg and she smiled as she thought back to the painting that they'd been looking at earlier, a wicked idea creeping in when she remembered the question that she'd asked; _"What do you think she's just said to him?"_

Eric raised his eyebrows back at her. He knew that look – '_she was planning something' - _but before he had a chance to ask her what, she suddenly sat upright and stood up. He glanced up at her, amused if a little puzzled and Calleigh bit back her smile when she realised that he looked exactly like the man in the painting. She hesitated for a moment as she tried to quell her doubts about what she wanted and was about to do, and she bit her lip, willing her inhibitions to disappear; she just wanted one night where she could let herself go completely. She smiled when her brain reminded her that she had an excuse; not only were they in Orlando, they were out of the lab and alone, and that gave her all the encouragement she needed.

"What are you thinking?" Eric asked her, becoming increasingly concerned.

"Branty swimming," she murmured, laughing at Eric's confused expression. "The girl in the painting; I think she told him she wanted to go branty swimming."

"Huh?" Eric asked, and his eyes widened as Calleigh flashed him a smirk and lifted her t-shirt over her head and threw it to the floor and he swallowed, suddenly a little afraid; _'was she really doing... what was she doing exactly?' _He heard her laugh again as she stepped out of her crops before she turned to face him.

"Bra and panties," she told him simply before she dived into the pool.

His mouth hung open until she surfaced and he froze, a little unsure about what to do.

"Aren't you coming?" she called, pushing her now soaked hair back off her face. She allowed herself to float, both surprised and grateful that the water was warm, and she laughed when she heard Eric's reply:

"Only if you promise not to laugh at my bra!"

She arched an eyebrow when, with a grin, he stripped to his boxers and dived expertly into the water, loving the warmth he felt as the water collected around his body. He surfaced next to her and sent a playful splash her way, getting a mouthful of water in return when her retaliation was a little stronger. He heard her laugh and she moved to doge his grasp but he was too quick for her and he pulled her towards him, forcing her to place her feet on the bottom of the pool so that her shoulders were just poking out of the water. He smiled when his feet found the bottom, too and he wrapped his arms around her and rested his forehead against hers; determined that this time, he was going to get that kiss...

* * *

Was I really just that mean to you? Yes, I do believe I was. Please don't hate me... I do update fast!

On a side-note; The Grand Bohemian Hotel's roof top pool is situated on a secondary roof, not the actual proper one but I took the liberty of moving it. XD

Reviews very much appreciated!


	14. Caution! Contents May be Harmful

Sorry it's been a few days since I last updated, real life kept getting in the way. (And no, the irony of my last author's note hasn't escaped me!)

It took me ages to work out what I was going to put in Valera's carrier bags; I well and truly shot myself in the foot with that one! I spent about an hour on Wal-Mart's website trying to find something with comic potential and, after little success, had to resort to my kitchen cupboards and a chemistry lesson I had about 5 years ago...

Anyway, enjoy! x

* * *

**Caution! Contents May be Harmful...**

* * *

With a satisfied sigh, Natalia pushed open the door to her room and began to fumble around for the light switch. Once the room was illuminated, she made her way over to her bed, emitting a sharp yelp of pain when she tripped over something and fell onto Valera's mattress with a loud _thud. _She took a moment to soothe her throbbing toe before she glanced down at the carrier bags that were responsible for her stumble. Some of the contents had fallen out and Natalia reached down to pick one up, frowning when she saw what it was and, with a newfound curiosity, she began to have a rummage in the hope of deducing just what Calleigh had planned for Rick.

**_/EC/_**

The sound of happy chatter and soft jazz floated around the hotel lobby and the hallways as Valera made her way back to the _Klimt Rotunda. _She smiled when she found Frank still sitting at the bar and she made her way over to him, deliberately settling herself down on his right; the seat closest to a particularly attractive barman. "So, H plays the saxophone then?" she laughed to Frank as she tried to catch the barman's eye.

Tripp took a sip of his pint and grinned. "Yeah, who knew?" he shrugged.

Valera shot him an amused look and glanced over to the stage in search of the lieutenant, frowning when she couldn't see him. Tripp followed her gaze and reached for his drink again. "He took a phone call," he said, reading her thoughts. "He should be back in a minute."

She nodded and impatiently began to drum her fingers on the counter of the bar. She briefly wondered what Eric and Calleigh were up to and her mouth settled onto a pout with the knowledge that not only would she be unlikely to ever find out, Calleigh _still_ hadn't told her what the extra items were for. Her thoughts were suppressed, however, when she finally caught the barman's eye and, with a flirtatious smile, she inched her stool closer to the counter; _'suddenly the night was looking up...'_

**_/EC/_**

Eric smiled down at the woman in his arms as she encircled his neck with her hands and, despite the warmth of the water, he felt himself shiver at her touch. He still couldn't quite believe that he was currently in a swimming pool, on top of a hotel roof in just his boxers with the woman he loved because, really, how often did that happen? He heard himself laugh at the notion and he tightened his grip on her waist as he slowly tilted his mouth to hers.

Calleigh briefly considered wriggling out of his embrace or teasing him a little more, but the sincerity in his eyes told her better and so instead, she met his mouth halfway. A smile tugged at her lips as she felt his hands drift across her stomach, her back, her shoulders and finally down to her waist again; but just before she could get used to his roaming hands, he deepened the kiss and, responsively, she moved her hands to his hair and threaded her fingers through it while he drew her tighter to his body. She found herself wondering why they hadn't done this before, why she hadn't allowed him to kiss her in all of their intimate positions throughout the day, but before she had a chance to regret it, he removed his lips from her mouth and settled them on her jaw where he began to trail kisses along it. Calleigh released a satisfied sigh and ran her hands gently across his shoulders, to his lower back and down across his chest while he continued to nip at and tease her skin.

His mouth found her neck, eliciting a soft moan from Calleigh and, suddenly realising that they were getting in a little too deep, she opened her eyes and brought her lips to his ear. "Eric..." she whispered, trailing off when he found a particularly sensitive spot.

She momentarily closed her eyes again in an attempt to gain some of her composure back before her hands found his chest and gently, but firmly, she pushed him away. Before he had a chance to say anything, she aimed a playful splash his way and ducked her head under the water which now felt like comforting ice to her heated skin.

Eric grinned and watched her shadow under the water. He got himself ready to direct an armful of water her way when she re-surfaced and was just about to create the wave when a loud noise interrupted them.

"Ahem."

Calleigh pushed her hair back and immediately spun round to face the direction that the voice had come from, biting her lip when she saw that the same concierge that had kicked them out of the gallery was stood merely a few feet away from them. Suddenly feeling a little exposed in just her underwear, she drew her arms across her chest and tried to float behind Eric; he was just as momentarily stunned as she was and he scratched the back of his neck nervously.

"It's amazing what CCTV cameras can pick up these days," the man began with a smirk. "Tell me, what were you going to do once you'd climbed out of the pool? Drip semi-naked down my corridors?"

Eric's mouth hung open and he made eye contact with Calleigh, hoping that she'd think of something to say because, right now, words had completely escaped him. She flashed him an uneasy smile and looked down at the water for a moment as she tried to formulate a sentence; she hadn't actually thought about the aftermath of the pool, had simply been too caught up in the moment. She was saved from having to answer, however, when the concierge spoke again.

"Well, I cannot have you leaving puddles everywhere, so I brought you some towels and bathrobes." He held up a bag and dropped it down on the cold stone of the poolside. "Now, I am going to head back down to the CCTV room and I do not want to see you both still here by the time I get there. Do I make myself clear?"

Calleigh bit her lip and fought the overwhelming urge to start laughing; she suddenly felt like some naughty teenager being caught red handed in the janitors closet - '_not that she'd ever done that, of course.'_

"Perfectly," she eventually managed. The man nodded and, with a final lingering smirk, he turned his back and headed over to the elevator.

Eric caught Calleigh's eye as soon as the concierge had stepped through the doors and after they'd exchanged a shy smile, the two of them began to laugh. He reached for both of her hands and tugged her through the water towards him, placing a light kiss on her mouth when he pulled her close enough.

"Come on," she smiled, breaking the kiss. "We best get out of here."

He watched as she swam to the edge of the pool and effortlessly pushed herself out of the water, and with an appreciative smile, he followed suit. She passed him a towel and had just started to dab herself dry when she suddenly realised something. "What time is it?" she asked Eric.

He yawned and looked down at his watch. "Quarter past 11, why?"

She flashed him a dangerous smile and slipped into her bathrobe, choosing to ignore his question. "I'm going back to my room to get changed," she said simply as she bent down to retrieve her clothes. "Meet me in the hotel lobby in fifteen minutes."

"Why?" he called after her as she reached the elevator, although he thought he had a pretty good idea.

"You'll see," she replied as the doors slid open and she stepped through them.

Eric arched an eyebrow as he watched her leave and with a soft chuckle, he shook his head and reached for his own bathrobe; he just hoped Stetler knew the number of a seriously good therapist...

**_/EC/_**

The first thing Horatio caught sight of when he stepped back into the bar was Valera, and his mouth hung open at the spectacle she was making of herself. She had hoisted herself up onto a table and was trying to dance whilst clearly intoxicated to a fairly up-tempo jazz song. He noticed Frank was trying to coax her down and in one swift motion he joined the man, exchanging a knowing look when Valera swiped away Tripp's hands.

"Frank," Horatio began, wincing as Valera nearly toppled off of the table. "Frank, how many has she had?"

"Too many," Frank replied as he tried to find her hand again.

The lieutenant nodded and, after a moment's hesitation, he reached up and grabbed Valera by the waist. She let out a frustrated yelp as he lifted her down and with an iron-tight grip, he tugged her out of the bar, closely followed by Tripp.

"Horatio, just because," Valera paused as a wave of nausea washed over her. "Just because you've had Rick and Na," she paused _again_ as she tried to remember how to say Natalia's name.

"Natalia?" Frank offered.

Valera nodded and pushed Horatio's arm away. "Just because you've had both of them in intimate positions today, does not mean you get to try it on with me!"

Horatio raised his eyebrows and exchanged a look with Frank. "Well, clearly alcohol hasn't rendered her use of speech completely useless," he muttered to the other man before he turned back to Valera and surprised her by picking her up. "Maxine, I'm taking you up to bed. You've had more than enough to drink and trust me, if you remember this, you're going to thank me in the morning," and before she had a chance to protest, he strode towards the elevator and pushed the button for their floor.

**_/EC/_**

The doors to Calleigh's elevator were just sliding shut as Horatio, Frank and Valera's opened and the three stumbled out. Her mouth hung open when, through the gap, she caught sight of Valera's arms and legs thrashing about as the woman shrieked in protest, and Calleigh winced on Natalia's behalf when she realised that she was about to be rudely awoken.

While Calleigh waited for the elevator to reach the ground floor, she tied her wet hair up using the reflective surface of the doors and took a moment to glance inside the carrier bag that she'd brought down with her; she knew what she wanted to do with the items, but she wasn't entirely sure how to execute her plan. The doors slid open before she had a chance to ponder the thought further, and she smiled when the reception desk came into view; '_first things first, she needed that key...'_

**_/EC/_**

Horatio cried out in pain as Valera's flailing body came into contact with his ribs, and he half dropped her outside his room. He turned to Frank and took a moment to lean against the wall to wait for the pain to subside before he eventually spoke. "How many rooms down is hers?"

Frank glanced down the hallway and mentally began to count. "Fourteen."

The lieutenant groaned and looking down at the thrashing and drunken body on the floor, he briefly considered his options. He decided he could either carry her the entire length of the corridor to her room where she would probably wake Natalia and Calleigh up - assuming they were both asleep, of course - or he could take her into his and Tripp's room. The night was still young and he and Frank could pop back to the bar for a few more drinks, by which time, Valera should be asleep and he could move her to her own room without risk of personal injury.

"Frank, could you open the door for me?" he grunted as he reached down and picked Valera up again.

Tripp widened his eyes and hesitated for a moment, before he eventually did as Horatio had asked and the two of them helped Valera into the room.

**_/EC/_**

Eric passed Horatio's room just as the door swung shut and he smiled, thinking that perhaps it was just him and Calleigh that were still up; that meant less chance of them bumping into any of the team and having to endure awkward questions about where they'd disappeared to. He'd been relieved to find that Ryan was asleep when he'd popped back to the room to get changed and he briefly wondered if the group had gone straight up to bed after he and Calleigh had snuck off. He grinned at the memory of the kiss that they'd shared and with the smile still tugging at his mouth, he stepped into the elevator and took it down to the lobby.

Calleigh was already there when he emerged through the doors; she was standing by reception flirting shamelessly with the man behind the desk and Eric felt a sharp pang of jealousy in his chest. He knew she didn't mean it, she was clearly after something and he'd seen her use her feminine charms before to get what she wanted, but he couldn't help but feel a little possessive; that was just who he was. He released a growl when the man leaned closer to her and handed her his card together with a room key and, deciding that he'd witnessed enough, Eric strode over to Calleigh and wrapped his arms around her from behind, shooting a warning glare at the other man.

He felt Calleigh jump before she melted into his touch and, ignoring the male receptionist, he brought his lips to her ear. "You done here?" he murmured against her skin, feeling her shiver a little in response.

"Um," she paused to give the man an apologetic smile, suddenly feeling a little guilty for using him. "Yeah, I'll meet you by the elevator okay?" She felt him nod before he eventually released her and she turned her attention back to the male receptionist. "Thank you again for your help." She flashed him one of her most sincere smiles and then moved to catch Eric up.

Eric pushed the button to call the elevator as she approached, and arched an eyebrow when he noticed the amused look on her face. "What?" he asked as she came to stand next to him, continuing when she said nothing and her smirk grew. "I'm not jealous," he said, reading her thoughts.

"No?" she raised her eyebrows but didn't lose her smile. "So what was that display of alpha-male for then?"

He laughed as she stepped into the elevator and he quickly followed suit, wrapping his arms around her as soon as the doors were closed. "Hey, I can't help it if I can't keep my hands off of you," he murmured as she wriggled an arm free and pushed the button for their desired floor. "So, what's the plan?" he breathed against her neck as he began to trail feather kisses down it.

Calleigh was silent for a moment, her brain temporarily rendered useless as Eric's mouth travelled to her jaw. While she'd been busy obtaining the spare key to Setler's room, her brain had managed to formulate a plan. "Well," she eventually managed. "First we have to sneak into Stetler's room and then - "

"What?" Eric pulled back and cut her off sharply. "Calleigh, you can't be serious!"

Before she had a chance to reply, a soft _ping_ interrupted them and the doors slid open to reveal an empty hallway. She flashed him a grin and reached for his hand, tugging him towards room number thirty-two. Eric's eyes widened as she pressed an ear to the door, listening for any sounds of movement and he spun her around to face him. She smiled at his serious face and gave his hand a gentle squeeze.

"Lighten up, Eric," she told him as she reached up to kiss the corner of his mouth.

He held her gaze for a moment and he sighed, realising that she was going to do this with or without him and, taking that as her cue, she flashed him a dangerous smile and swiped the key card through the slot. Once the light turned green, she tentatively pushed the door open and breathed a sigh of relief when she caught sight of Stetler's sleeping form on his bed, and she slipped inside the room, Eric close behind her. She quietly shut the door and gestured for Eric to follow her to the bathroom and once they'd entered it, she placed the carrier bag she'd brought with her down on the counter.

"I thought there were four?" Eric whispered.

"There were, but one contained Valera's clothes and she wasn't lying when she told Rick she'd bought some essentials. I only asked her to pick up three items for me."

As quietly as she could, she began to rummage through the bag and he couldn't help but wonder what harmful contents it contained. She released a satisfied sigh when she found what she was looking for and she passed it to Eric; he glanced down at the plastic container and arched an eyebrow. "Bicarbonate of soda?"

"Yes, now I need you to fill the jacuzzi jets with it," she whispered as she felt around for the vinegar and a spoon.

Eric shook his head when he saw what she produced and fought back a laugh when he realised what her plan was. He watched for a moment as she reached for the panel at the side of the jacuzzi that contained the bubble bath, before she began to spoon out most of the soap into the now empty carrier bag. He chuckled softly to himself as he bent down to do as she'd asked.

She caught his eye as she poured the vinegar into the draw that had previously contained the soap and gestured to the pot in his hands. "Make sure you put as much bicarb in as possible," she murmured. "We don't want the water to counteract the reaction too much."

He smiled and did as he was told while she peered round the door to check that Stetler was still asleep. "How can we be sure he's going to use this in the morning?" Eric whispered behind her.

She turned to face him and arched an eyebrow. "How could he not? Eric, this bath is _too_ good to not use - especially after the day he'll remember he had when he wakes up!"

Eric grinned back at her, loving how confident she was about this, and after finally having crammed as much bicarbonate of soda as he possibly could into the jacuzzi's jets, he stood up and reached for her hand. "Okay, job done. Let's get out of here," and with that, he gently tugged her out of the bathroom and moved them quickly to the door and out of Stetler's room.

Once they were in the hallway, Calleigh tossed the soap-filled carrier bag into a bin and, with a laugh, she allowed Eric to walk her towards her room. She bit back her cry of surprise when he gently nudged her up against her door and placed his palms either side of her head; he knew that nothing was going to happen between them tonight - not least because they were sharing rooms with other people - but also because it was too soon and he didn't want to push her, but he wasn't quite ready to let her go yet.

He heard Calleigh sigh as he buried his nose in her hair and he smiled when he realised that despite the slight scent of chlorine, he could still smell her shampoo; a scent somewhere between vanilla and coconut. His mouth slowly traversed the distance to her ear and he traced his lips across it, taking a moment to memorise everything about her. "I'm not going to be able to sleep tonight," he breathed as he found the nape of her neck and began to gently nip at the skin there.

It was all Calleigh could do to keep herself standing as she felt his lips move up to her jaw, trailing light kisses as he moved. "Eric..." she moaned, trailing off when he brushed the corner of her mouth. She felt a smile tug at his lips as he did it again, only this time, he moved to a more central place on her mouth and she whimpered when he pulled away much too soon for her liking. He opened his mouth to speak but before he could utter a word, she grabbed the hem of his shirt and roughly tugged him back to her, capturing his mouth in another kiss; it was his turn to whimper when this time, _she_ broke away.

She held his gaze for a moment as she struggled to convince herself that what she was about to do was definitely the best thing, especially considering that Natalia and Valera were in serious danger of waking up to something that she most certainly did not want them to see. It was with that thought that she reached up to plant a light kiss on the corner of Eric's mouth before she gently pushed him backwards and swiped her card key in the slot.

"Goodnight, Eric," she breathed with as much sincerity as she could muster and then, with a smile, she closed the door; sliding down the cool, hard wood as soon as it was shut.

Out in the hallway, Eric still hadn't moved. He wanted nothing more than to break the door down and take her into his arms once more, but his brain knew better and with a sigh, he made his way down the corridor; knowing that he needed to find a bathroom, and fast.

Still leaning against the door, Calleigh closed her eyes and took a moment to control her breathing, a little shocked at how much Eric had managed to affect her. She glanced around the room and frowned when she noticed that Valera hadn't come up to bed yet and deciding that it would be in her best interests to try to be asleep by the time Maxine eventually did come up, Calleigh stood and moved over to her bed. Then with a sigh, she flopped down into it; knowing that it was unlikely that neither she nor Eric were going to be able to sleep tonight. She just hoped that whatever tomorrow's activity was, it wasn't going to be too strenuous...

**_/EC/_**

A loud ringing woke Stetler up and he growled at the alarm clock on his right. He smacked his fist down hard on the top of it and rubbed his eyes once it had stopped its incessant noise. He took a moment to survey his surroundings and groaned when he suddenly remembered everything that had happened to him the day before; he'd hoped that it had all been some horrible nightmare and he growled again as he slipped out of his bed. With a stretch, he made his way over to his en-suite and he splashed his face with cold water, trying to wake himself up. The massage he'd received last night had actually done him good, despite the intense pain that he'd had to endure, and he made a mental note to find a good masseuse back in Miami...

His trail of thought stopped when he suddenly caught sight of the gleaming jacuzzi bath in the mirror and he sighed blissfully, already picturing how good it was going to feel; _'Oh yes, this was going to be heaven...'_

* * *

Right, I hope all the teases I gave you with all the EC interaction in the previous chapters have well and truly been made up for!

To those of you who haven't yet worked out what Calleigh and Eric's plan is, all will be revealed in the next chapter.

Anyway, I'm off now. I'll update ASAP!


	15. When Chemicals React, Bubbles May Form

Sorry about not posting, real life can be such a pain sometimes!

It's not about to get any less of one either so I may not be able to update this weekend but I'll see what I can do.

Enjoy! x

* * *

**When Chemicals React, Bubbles May Form...**

* * *

_His trail of thought stopped when he suddenly caught sight of the gleaming jacuzzi bath in the mirror and he sighed blissfully, already picturing how good it was going to feel; 'Oh yes, this was going to be heaven...'_

* * *

Stetler immediately reached for the tap of his bath and, without waiting for it to fill up, he jumped into it and settled against the side, patiently waiting for the rising water to collect around him. After a moment, he reached for the button labeled 'bubble bath' and he pressed it, leaning back against the smooth ceramic of the tub once he'd done so. He closed his eyes and began to relax as the water climbed higher and he released a satisfied sigh, feeling that despite everything that had happened to him yesterday, today was going to be a much better day...

Suddenly noticing that the water level was high enough, he turned the tap off. He frowned when he felt his nostrils tense as a distinct and unpleasant smell began to waft around the bathroom, but not choosing to ignore it, he fumbled around for the button that controlled the jets and switched it to the 'on' position, looking down just in time to register the murky yellow colour of the water. His eyes widened when he suddenly recognised the smell; vinegar.

Bubbles started to form around him as the jets began to pump furiously and Stetler caught sight of small particles of white power collecting across the surface of the water, but before he had a chance to work out just what the substance was, a loud hissing noise started up and the white solid began to whizz violently around the tub. He felt a tingling sensation on his skin as the particles stuck to it and he momentarily froze, a little uncertain about what to do; the water level was rapidly rising and the bubbles were dangerously expanding. His brain began to panic when he realised that he had no idea how to stop whatever reaction was occurring. But despite his sudden incapability to think straight, he was still able to muster up a single thought and he released it with a growl, "Duquesne!"

He frantically began to press the buttons on the side of his bath in an attempt to stop the jets but to little avail. The water was still rising and effervescing so dangerously that he reverted back to panicking. What little bubble bath that had been left by Calleigh had formed giant clumps of foam and they were slowly encasing Stetler's body but, right now, that was the least of his worries; the water had started to overflow out of the tub and a large puddle was seeping its way across the bathroom floor. He suddenly caught sight of a button labeled 'drain' and he began to pummel at it, thinking that if he did so, the water level might decrease faster; '_hey, he was willing to try anything right now...'_

**_/EC/_**

Natalia groaned as she felt herself being shaken awake. She attempted to swat the hands away and buried herself deeper under her covers, only to have them rudely ripped off of her. "What the hell!" she shouted angrily, sitting up as she did so. She softened immediately when she caught sight of Calleigh's concerned face. "What's wrong?"

"Valera didn't come back here last night," Calleigh replied, pointing to the empty, perfectly made up bed. "Where did y'all go after..." She trailed off, suddenly remembering how she and Eric had snuck off.

"After you and Eric pulled a disappearing act on us?" Natalia finished, arching an eyebrow. "Ryan and I went up to bed. Separately!" she added quickly, noticing Calleigh's surprised expression. "Valera stayed behind. Maybe she went looking for you and Eric?"

Calleigh bit her lip and looked away from Natalia's inquisitive stare, suddenly feeling a little uncomfortable. She also couldn't help but feel slightly guilty at the notion that Valera was lost because of her and, with a frustrated sigh, she sat herself at the end of Natalia's bed. "I tried phoning her as soon as I woke up but she left her phone in here." She gestured to the cell on Valera's bedside table.

Natalia took a moment to rub her eyes and to stretch as she tried to wake herself up. She knew from previous experience what a lightweight Valera was, and she found herself becoming increasingly concerned; sure, Valera was a big girl and she could take care of herself, '_but then again...'_

"I'm going to see if Horatio's awake," Calleigh began, obviously feeling the same sense of worry. "Maybe he saw her last night." She slipped herself off the bed and reached for one of the bathrobes that the hotel provided in all of the rooms. "You coming?" she asked as she slid into it.

With a yawn, Natalia nodded and followed her colleague out of the room, silently hoping that Valera was okay; '_wherever she was...'_

**_/EC/_**

Valera woke up with a low groan, rolling over in pain as last night's drinking escapade hit her. She waited until her world had stopped spinning and sat up slowly, wincing at the sharp stabbing sensation she felt in her head and she closed her eyes, willing the pain to subside. She took a moment to try and remember the events of the previous night and frowned when all she could muster were some hazy snapshots of, _'her dancing maybe?'_

Keeping her eyes closed, Valera ran a hand through her hair and flopped herself back down onto her pillows, immediately sitting back up again when a loud snore reverberated around the room. She froze; not yet daring to open her eyes, not yet ready to face whoever she'd managed to pick up last night. Her first reaction was to silently pray that he was cute, her second to try and calm herself down about the possibility that Calleigh and Natalia had seen and heard _everything_ and her third was to think of how to make a quick getaway. Valera whimpered when another snore interrupted her trail of thought and she slowly opened one eye, almost breathing a sigh of relief when she realised that she wasn't in her room; that meant her two roommates hadn't had to endure the nights... _activities._

Feeling slightly calmer, Valera opened her other eye and after a moment's hesitation, she turned her head to the side, widening her eyes at the sight; _'oh, God.'_

**_/EC/_**

Natalia hugged her arms as she and Calleigh made their way down the hallway, scolding herself for not thinking to put on a bathrobe. She took a moment to glance around at all the various paintings that littered the walls and she arched an eyebrow at one in particular; _'artists sure love their nudity.'_

"Have you noticed that there's artwork everywhere in this hotel?" she asked.

"Yeah," Calleigh murmured with a smile, thinking back to the gallery that she and Eric had discovered last night. "I guess the owner's a collector."

Natalia eyed her colleague closely, not missing the secret smile that tugged at her lips, but before she had a chance to comment, the door to Horatio's room flew open and a hysterical Valera flung herself out of it.

"Maxine, what's wrong?" Calleigh asked, instinctively reaching for the other woman's flailing hands in an attempt to calm her down. "Are you okay?"

"Do I look okay?" Valera shrieked, snatching her arms back so she could wave them about again. "I mean, it's bad enough that I've woken up with the mother of all hang overs but - " She paused, partly to wait for a wave of nausea to subside, but mostly because what she was about to say was a little - no, a lot - scary.

"What happened?" Natalia prompted, placing a gentle palm on Valera's shoulder.

Valera swallowed and took a deep breath, trying to build up the courage to say it. "I shared a bed with Frank _and_ Horatio last night," she eventually whispered.

Calleigh's mouth hung open and she exchanged a look with Natalia, both of them temporarily rendered speechless at what Valera's sentence implied but at that moment, Tripp stumbled out of the door, closely followed by Horatio.

"Valera, calm down, it's not what you think," Frank rushed, reaching out to place a soothing hand on her arm.

"No?" she shrieked, jumping backwards. "Then maybe you'd care to explain just why I woke up to find you and Horatio in such close proximity to not only my person but also each other!"

"Maxine," a soft voice began. "Maxine, you insisted."

Valera widened her eyes and tugged at her hair, struggling to come to terms with what Horatio had just said. She knew that she'd been drunk last night, but she'd like to think that even in such an intoxicated state, she'd have had better judgment than to have demanded that Frank and Horatio come to bed with her. _'Right?'_

"It's true," Frank shrugged. "We brought you up to our room after your little table dance in the bar last night and - "

"What?" Calleigh cut in, raising her eyebrows at Valera. She watched as the other woman brought a hand to head and grimaced, clearly remembering what those images that she'd woken up to were all about.

"Why didn't you take me to _my _room?" Valera hissed.

"Because you were making it very difficult to take you anywhere!" Frank retorted. "Besides, we didn't want you to wake up Calleigh and Natalia."

Calleigh squirmed a little under Natalia's knowing glance, both of them knowing full well that she hadn't been there to actually _be_ woken up.

"Well, you still haven't explained why I woke up with both of you in my bed!" she heard Valera shriek.

"Actually..." Horatio paused, "It was _my_ bed." He continued quickly when he saw Valera take a step to hit him. "We'd just managed to settle you down onto it when you demanded that we got into it with you."

"Yeah," Frank added. "We kept trying to tell you no but you wouldn't listen and practically dragged us down under the covers with you. We spent the next ten minutes fighting with you in an attempt to get back up!" He gestured to a nasty bruise that had formed on his forearm. "In the end we decided to wait until you'd fallen asleep and then we'd escape, but everytime we moved, you seemed to come alive again and were even more insistent on using us both as human teddy bears!"

With a sigh, Valera leant herself against the wall and closed her eyes, not sure whether to be relieved or embarrassed by her behaviour; it could have been far worse. She frowned as she tried to conjure up some memory to confirm what the two men had just told her but when she couldn't, she decided that she was just going to have to come out and say it. "So, nothing happened?" she whispered, hardly daring to know the answer.

"Nothing," Tripp confirmed.

She barely had a chance to digest Frank's answer when Stetler suddenly emerged from a room to her left and she widened her eyes at the sight; he was wearing nothing save from a towel around his waist and huge foam bubbles were hanging off his skin, leaving fizzing wet patches on the carpet as he began to walk towards the group. If it hadn't been for the crazed look in his eyes or the faint hissing noise that was reverberating off of him, Valera would have laughed at how ridiculous he looked; somewhere between a deformed big foot and a melting abominable snowman.

"Horatio, I'm using your shower," he growled tightly as he reached the room, clearly trying to hold onto some sense of his dignity. "I don't trust any of my washing facilities," he added, shooting a glare at Calleigh. He couldn't be sure that she had actually done anything, of course, but when it came to her, his paranoia reached new heights and after yesterday, he definitely wouldn't put it past her.

"Rick..." Horatio began. "May I ask why?"

"No," he snapped, shoving past the lieutenant. "You've got an hour for breakfast and then I want everyone on the mini bus! We've got Arthur's activity to do and then we can go home and forget that this God forsaken team bonding session ever happened!"

"Oh, I don't know," Calleigh smiled, deliberately enhancing her Southern accent. "I think it's been kinda fun."

"Shut up, Duquesne!" he growled as he disappeared into the bathroom, trailing small clumps of foam behind him.

The group lost control as soon as they head the door slam shut and tried their hardest to commit the image of a foaming Stetler to memory; it was just too funny to forget. With a final laugh, Calleigh gave a polite nod to both Horatio and Frank, and began the short walk back to her own room, hoping to get first dibs on the shower. She heard Valera breathe a sigh of relief behind her and she smiled, realising that the other woman was slowly beginning to recover from this morning's shock. "How's your head?" she asked as Valera caught her up.

"Awful," Valera moaned. "I'm not quite sure whether I want to remember everything that happened last night or not."

"Well, you're not the only one who had a late night," Natalia's voice suddenly cut in. "I wasn't even awake by the time Calleigh must've come up." She paused to look at the blonde CSI. "Just where did you and Eric disappear off to, anyway?"

Calleigh immediately tensed as soon as the question left Natalia's mouth, but as hard as she tried, she couldn't fight away the small smile that tugged at her lips when she thought of just why she'd come up late. She briefly met Valera's inquisitive gaze before she looked away and nervously tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, trying to think of a way out of the conversation.

"Who do you think turned Stetler into a walking foam ball?" she eventually shrugged with a playful smile, hoping that the two women wouldn't ask anymore questions and, deciding that she didn't want to wait to find out, she shot a glance at Valera and tried to change the subject. "So, you did some table dancing, huh?"

Valera grimaced as another image flashed through her mind and she quickened her pace, deciding that she just wanted to climb back into bed - the right one this time - and not wake up for another few hours; _'she was never going to live this one down...'_

**_/EC/_**

With a small whimper, Stetler settled himself in the driving seat of the mini bus. He'd just spent ages trying to clean up the mess that had been left in his bathroom and he found himself already hating the new day. He was dreading to find out what their final and spontaneous activity was going to be, not least because he didn't want to think of the things Calleigh could do to him through it, but also because he just wanted to go home. He took a moment to glance behind him to double check that everyone was on board and once he was sure that they all were, he reached for the ignition and started the engine.

"Horatio, take a look in that envelope that Arthur gave us will you? See if you can work out just what it is that we're doing," he barked.

Choosing to say nothing, Horatio did as Stetler asked; he'd long since given up on Rick ever being able to use the word _'please'_ and he couldn't help but wonder if the man even knew that the word existed. He took out the document inside of the envelope and began to read aloud. "Good morning everyone, I hope you enjoyed your night at the hotel and that you're all refreshed and ready for your next activity." He paused when he heard a collective groan from the bus and smiled when he realised that for once, even Stetler had contributed. "I'm not going to give anything away except to tell you that you're heading for International Drive, Orlando's most dynamic destination." Horatio looked up from the letter, "That's it, then there is just a list of directions."

"Please tell me that we are not going to a water park!" Valera piped up, realising that 'Wet and Wild' was situated in that area, and she couldn't help but be a little afraid; her hangover had gotten worse and she wasn't sure that she'd be able to cope with high slides and wave pools.

Stetler also found himself feeling slightly scared; after the experience that he'd had in the bath this morning, he'd had more than enough of his share of water for one day.

"What else is at International Drive?" Ryan asked.

"More like what isn't," Eric replied. "SeaWorld, Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, Discovery Cove..." He trailed off when he caught sight of Calleigh's puzzled glance. "I took my nieces up there when my sister went on vacation last summer," he explained. "I got dragged around them all."

Valera grimaced at the thought of having to endure roller-coasters and thrill rides, especially considering her delicate state, and she rested her head against the window, trying to fight away the throbbing sensation in her forehead; _'oh, this was not fun.'_

**_/EC/_**

The mini bus eventually came to a stop outside a large picturesque area and Calleigh squinted at the sign as she stepped off the bus, trying to work out what they were doing there. She rolled her eyes when she made out the letters and drew her arms across her chest, knowing that it was likely that they were going to be here for a while.

"Grande Pines Golf Club,_" _Ryan read beside her. "You've got to be kidding me!" He took a moment to glance over at Stetler and frowned when he realised that the man actually looked quite happy to be here.

"Did you know that this is one of America's best golf courses!" he squealed, noticing Ryan's gaze. "Nick Faldo helped to created it!"

"Who?" Valera groaned as she got down from the bus, pausing for a moment to wait for her head to stop spinning.

"A professional golfer!" Rick snapped, a bit put out that only he seemed particularly excited about the activity. "He's won three Open Championships and three US Masters."

"Oh," Valera muttered, clearly not interested.

Calleigh smiled to herself as she listened to the exchange and her eyes wandered over the course in front of her. It was a vast area of greenery and water that was obviously designed to test players to the limit. She'd never been a fan of golf herself, but she smiled wider when she realised how many opportunities the game was going to produce, and she took a moment to study a giant board that depicted the course, looking for the perfect place to execute a potential plan. Sighed happily when she spotted a picture of the fourth hole;_ 'it was perfect - private.'_

"Care to guess what Arthur thought golf would teach us?" she heard Ryan moan.

"Golf tests patience and the ability to think strategically," Stetler replied before he addressed the rest of the group. "Okay team, let's go and pick up some golf clubs." He shot a warning glare at Calleigh and with a low growl, he strode off towards a large building.

Calleigh waited for the group to follow and grabbed Eric's arm as he, too, moved to leave. She tugged him backwards and leaned in to whisper in his ear. "Make sure you putt quickly, cheat if you have too." She laughed at his confused expression and giving his arm a gentle squeeze, she made her way over to the equipment hire.

Eric grinned and shook his head as he watched her leave; it never ceased to amaze him just how relentless she was with her schemes, and he made a mental note to remind him to never get on her bad side. _'Although,'_ he suddenly thought with a smirk. _'In the right circumstances, it could be fun...'_

**_/EC/_**

With a gentle sigh, Natalia sat herself next to a slightly green looking Valera and waited patiently for Calleigh to take a shot. The Ballistics expert had grabbed her clubs and shot out of the building so quickly that it could only mean one of two things; either Calleigh loved golf, or she was planning something, and it didn't exactly take rocket science to work out which reason it was. She laughed as she saw Rick move to take up a position to hit his golf ball, only to be beaten by Eric.

"Delko!" Stetler barked. "It's my turn!"

Eric grinned as he lined up his shot and swung his golf club. "Sorry," he called offhandedly as his club connected with the ball, sending it high into the air and over an impressive distance. He gave Rick little chance to retort as he grabbed his bag and set off down the bank in search of it, smiling as he went.

Rick glared after him and with a low growl, he turned his attention back to his ball, throwing his club across the grass when he saw Horatio had stepped up and was already examining the shot.

"If anyone holds me up throughout this course then I guarantee that I won't hesitate to play through you!" he snarled.

"Rick," Horatio began calmly as he parted his legs and began to swing his club. "Rick, what makes you think that you're any good at this game or that we're bad?" he asked as he hit a perfect shot.

"Is that a challenge, Horatio?" Stetler grunted, a little impressed at the lieutenants skill - not that he'd ever tell him, of course. He still thought himself better, however, and was determined to try and beat him, still feeling that he needed to reassert his male dominance. _'Especially after this morning,' _he thought bitterly as he caught sight of Calleigh in the distance. She didn't appear to be doing anything besides playing the hole, and he breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that perhaps just this once, she might not actually be plotting anything against him. In fact, she seemed more interested in Eric, and Stetler frowned as the two kept exchanging shy glances and secret smiles; they seemed closer than ever...

"Come on, Rick!" Horatio suddenly yelled. "At this rate, if anyone's going to hold us up it's going to be you!"

Stetler snapped his head round to glare him and stalked over to where he'd thrown his golf club. He was on his way back when Tripp stepped up and began to putt.

"Out the way, Frank!" he yelled as he barged into the man and, without giving him a chance to retort, he lined up his shot and struck the ball effortlessly, sighing happily as he watched it soar through the air in a perfect line; _'yes, golf was definitely his game.'_

**_/EC/_**

Five shots was all it took Calleigh to move onto the next hole and considering that she'd hardly ever played golf, and the sheer size of the course, she couldn't help but be a little impressed with herself. She laughed when she saw Eric glance around to check for witnesses before he kicked his own ball into the small dip in the grass and he raised his eyes to hers in a playful smirk.

"You said to cheat," he laughed.

"Yeah, I did," she smiled. They needed to get far enough in front so that they could disappear, and she checked behind them to see if anyone was close, frowning when she saw that Horatio and Stetler were gaining on them rapidly. "Let's skip the next hole," she whispered, setting off at a fast pace so that Eric had to jog to catch her up.

"How about we skip this entire activity?" he asked, arching an eyebrow suggestively and placing a hand lightly on the small of her back.

She bit back her smile and held his gaze for a moment, actually considering what he was clearly thinking, but she shook her head, deciding that she couldn't not do something to Stetler; she didn't want to break tradition, after all. _'But,' _she thought as she eyed a clump of trees in the distance by what looked like the fourth hole. _'There was no reason why she couldn't indulge in both...' _and after checking that no one was looking, she reached for Eric's hand and tugged him the direction of the vegetation, her brain working overtime as a scheme began to take shape in her mind.

"Uh, Cal?" Eric called as he allowed himself to be dragged behind her. "What are we doing exactly?"

"Humiliating Stetler," she grinned over her shoulder. "We're heading for the fourth hole."

Eric glanced in the direction that she pointed and pulled her backwards a little so that she was in line with him. "But it's going to take him a while to get there," he smiled, raising his eyebrows.

"Mmm," she began innocently. "Guess we'll have to find something to pass the time. Any ideas?"

"Well, I guess branty swimming's out," he laughed, noticing the reed covered lakes that surrounded the course; they looked pretty, but he was willing to bet that they were both dirty and cold. "So, tell me," he began, "what's the plan for Stetler?"

She flashed him a dangerous smile and gave his hand a playful squeeze; _'oh, it was good...'_

* * *

That's for next time. :p

Just in case anyone's still confused about what EC did, I'll give you a basic chemistry lesson:

Vinegar is an acid and bicarbonate of soda is an alkali. When the two mix, a simple - yet very fun to watch - acid base reaction occurs releasing carbon dioxide and water. It's the carbon dioxide that foams and bubbles about. If anyone wants to try it, simply add a small amount of bicarbonate of soda/baking soda into a beaker, add a little soap and some water and then add some vinegar. I take no responsibility for any injuries/breakage's mind!

Reviews very much appreciated.


	16. Distractions and Discoveries

Sorry about the late update. I've been ridiculously busy lately and when I have had spare moments, I've been taking advantage of the sunshine.

Speaking of which, I was out with some friends for dinner on Friday night and we decided to take a shortcut home along the beach. Anyway, we came across another group of friends who were indulging in some branty swimming... ah, it did make me laugh. Although, I don't know how they did it; the water would have been freezing... not that I'd know, of course.

Enjoy! x

* * *

**Distractions and Discoveries...**

* * *

The flag that marked the fourth hole was rippling in the lazy breeze as Calleigh's hand reached out and tugged it free. Then with a playful look directed at Eric, she considered her options; did she move it to the hidden sand bunker or to the patch of grass situated just in front of one of the artificial lakes? Her gaze settled onto the latter for a moment as she contemplated whether Rick had, had enough water today, and she was just about to make a decision when Eric interrupted her thoughts.

"What are you doing?" he asked her, eyebrows raised questioningly.

"Well, when golfers begin a hole, they look for the flag that tells them where to drive the ball so - "

"You thought that you'd move it to somewhere _inconvenient?"_ Eric smiled, shooting her an amused look. "You know, Calleigh," he began, closing the distance between them. "I'm a little disappointed. I figured that you'd have come up with something far more inventive than that," he teased, snaking his arms around her.

She tensed, her pride a little insulted. As far as she was concerned, golf was a simple game. You had a golf club, a golf ball and a hole, then it was just a case of how to get from A to B. Minus the decision as to whether you strike the ball hard or gently, of course, but that was common sense, especially for someone like her who used reasoning skills almost everyday. She therefore felt that the prank didn't deserve any special attention; simple game, simple - yet effective - prank.

"Well, judging from everything else that I've thrown at Stetler this weekend, and how seriously he seemed to be taking this exercise, I figured anything that I did would annoy him," she defended.

Eric laughed and removed a hand from her waist to brush a wisp of hair away that had fallen over her face. She watched him curiously as his hand moved down her arm to the hand that gripped the flagpole, before he gently prized it from her grasp and dropped it to the ground.

"Clearly you're not that interested in humiliating Stetler," she murmured as he pulled her now free arms around his neck.

"Not so much. no," he whispered with a smile, closing the final gap between them.

**_/EC/_**

Horatio smiled as he executed a perfect drive and, with a quick and pointed glance back at Rick, he grabbed his clubs and made his way over to where his golf ball had settled. He took a moment to survey the horizon and sighed when he realised that there was no sign of Calleigh or Eric - '_not that, that was surprising of course_,' he thought with a slight shake of the head. So far he'd been happy to let Calleigh's antics slide - they were funny, after all, and this was Stetler - but not this time. It was time to put a stop to it; _'besides,'_ he smiled, glancing back at Rick once more. _'It was time for some fun of his own...'_

"Hey, Rick," Horatio began as Stetler approached, golf clubs in tow. "About that challenge - "

"Save yourself the trouble, Horatio," Rick smirked. "You won't beat me."

Horatio allowed himself to smile as turned his attention back to the game, parting his legs as he got ready to putt. He eyed up the distance between his golf ball and the hole and with a gentle swing, he raised his eyes to Rick, not even bothering to look as the ball disappeared into the dip marked by the flag. "Oh no?" he called over his shoulder, taking out his cell phone as he did so. "Guess we'll have to see about that."

Stetler kept his gaze focused on the hole that Horatio's ball had just dropped into and he growled a little as his determination to beat the man grew stronger. Golf was a man's game, a way to prove who was the best, and it was a game that he intended to win...

**_/EC/_**

Calleigh groaned when she felt her cell buzz and once she'd disentangled herself enough from Eric, she answered it. "Duquesne?"

"Ma'am..." a soft voice spoke back.

Suddenly very aware that her boss was on the phone to her, she removed herself completely from Eric's embrace and shot him a warning look.

"I'm just curious as to where you and Eric have disappeared to?" Horatio continued.

"Um," Calleigh paused, a little unsure how to answer. She arched an eyebrow as Eric stepped closer to her again, a playful smirk on his face.

"Listen, Calleigh," Horatio began again. "Whatever it is that you're planning, I'm asking you to stop."

"But, Horatio, I - " She paused. "I mean I wasn't - " She paused again, suddenly feeling very torn about what to say or do. She also couldn't help but be a little confused as to why he was asking her to stop; he hadn't said anything to her about any of her other plans and she'd never once outright admitted that everything that had happened to Stetler had been her fault. Horatio had even defended her after the paintball incident and, despite herself, she felt a slight pang of annoyance. She knew, however, that this was her boss, and it was time to be professional, and perhaps she had done enough to Rick. She couldn't, however, shake away that desire to ask why she should stop and as if he was reading her thoughts, Horatio spoke again.

"Calleigh," he paused. "Calleigh it's my turn."

She pushed Eric backwards when she felt his hands begin to wander and took a moment to process what Horatio had just said, _'his turn?'_

"Rick is of the impression that he can beat me at this game and I'd like the opportunity to prove him wrong," Horatio explained. "You've had your fun, now how about you go and spend some time with Eric?" he added, somewhat knowingly.

Calleigh froze, not quite sure what he meant by that, and she sighed as Eric closed the distance between them _again_, burying his nose in her hair and drawing her in tight. "Eric and I - " she began, feeling uncomfortable about lying to Horatio. "We're not, um..." She trailed off as Eric's actions started to distract her.

"Just stay away from Stetler, okay?" Horatio smiled into his phone and before she had a chance to answer, she heard a click to signal that he was gone.

Temporarily ignoring Eric, she took a moment to digest what that conversation had been about, suddenly feeling very confused and, if she was honest, a little disappointed; she'd become accustomed to doing something to Stetler during each and every activity and she couldn't help but feel a slight loss when she realised that this time, Horatio had told her to stop. Then there was the sentence, "_how about you go and spend some time with Eric?"_ and she frowned as she contemplated whether Horatio knew about her relationship with Eric or not. Valera and Natalia had managed to pick up on something back at the hotel and, in fact, Natalia had questioned her even before she'd acknowledged her feelings for Eric. So it was only plausible that Horatio had guessed too...

"Where are you?" Eric suddenly asked, slightly concerned at how tense she'd become in the last couple of minutes.

She softened at his worried look and pulled him back to her, reaching up to place a gentle and reassuring kiss on the corner of his mouth. _'So what if Horatio had guessed?' _she thought to herself. If he had, he certainly hadn't suggested that it was wrong or against the rules, and had in fact almost given her the okay to pursue the relationship. Still saying nothing, she stepped backwards and bent down to pick up the flag pole, before settling it back in its rightful place once more and then, with a smile, she gestured for Eric to follow her.

"What about Stetler?" Eric asked, still confused about what was going on.

"Horatio has it covered," she called back and, with a gentle shrug, she made her way over to a patch of vegetation by one of the larger artificial lakes. "Aren't you coming?" she teased as she disappeared into the trees.

Eric laughed and scratched the back of his head nervously. He wasn't quite sure what she was doing, or where she was going, and now that humiliating Stetler wasn't on the cards, he was a little fearful about where all of her restless energy was going to go. But then deciding that it would probably be fun to find out, he reached for both of their clubs and began a slow jog over to where she'd gone.

**_/EC/_**

Ryan laughed as he watched Valera's pathetic attempt to putt the ball. She must have missed the hole about seven times now and it was clear that the woman was becoming increasingly frustrated.

"This is ridiculous!" she groaned, as if on cue. "And to think, Arthur actually thought that we'd enjoy this!" She shot Ryan a glare as he putted his own ball effortlessly.

"You just need to work on your technique, that's all," he shrugged, taking a step backwards as Valera rounded on him.

"Well, thanks, Ryan, but you know what? How about you try playing this stupid game with a throbbing headache and flashbacks of embarrassing things that you'd really rather not remember coursing through your mind!"

"I take it you're not feeling any better?" Natalia asked, looking up from where she'd sat herself on the grass. She'd putted her own ball a little while ago but didn't have the heart to leave her friend behind; especially when it was just Horatio and Stetler ahead who'd seemed to have begun some silly 'alpha male' war that she'd really rather not take part in.

"No," she heard Valera sigh and she exchanged an amused smile with Ryan as Maxine tried once more to complete the hole. "That's it," she began again as the ball rolled well wide of its target. "I give up!"

Frank stirred from his position next to Natalia and hauled himself up. He, too, had chosen not to get involved in whatever Stetler and Horatio were trying to prove to one another, and had been waiting patiently for the rest of the group to move onto the next hole with him.

"Come on, Maxine," he said, reaching for her club. "I'll help you. Stand here." He pointed to an invisible spot on the grass where her ball was and watched as she tentatively did as she was told. "Okay, good, now grip your club like this." He paused to demonstrate. "You try."

Valera took the club from him and arranged her hands just as he had done, widening her eyes when his arms flew round her from behind and his hands settled over hers. She felt him start to swing the golf club but before he had a chance to say or do anything, she whirled around and wriggled herself free. "I've had more than enough contact with you this morning, Frank!" she hissed, clearly still a little sore about what had happened earlier; even though nothing had _actually _happened, she couldn't shake the question of, _'what if?'_

Tripp sighed and drew his arms across his chest, obviously thinking that she was being more than a little silly. "Look, do you want to putt the damn ball or not? Because if so, you're not going to do it on your own."

She considered arguing with him for a moment but then realised that it would pointless to do so; she had just spent several minutes trying to complete the hole and she had three witnesses to contend that she was indeed rubbish at this game. "Fine," she sighed. "But stay where I can see you and no funny business!"

"I really do dread to think what goes on in that head of yours," he snapped back, cautiously slipping behind her again. He felt her retort building inside of her but before she had a chance to utter it, he placed a palm over her mouth and with his free hand, he moved her club expertly, smiling when, with a gentle tap, the ball slipped into the hole. He bit back the urge to tell her that while it had taken her several attempts to putt the ball, he'd taken one, used just one hand _and_ had managed to silence her. Tripp smiled; _'and they say that men are no good at multi-tasking...'_

**_/EC/_**

Eric sighed happily as Calleigh leant back against him. They'd walked through the trees to find a small and hidden clearing that overlooked the other side of the golf course and offered views of several lakes and another group of golfers who were slowly making their way through the eighteen holes. Calleigh had settled herself down on the bank of the lake and he'd moved in behind her, and that's how they'd been for a while, neither of them saying anything.

"Do you ever think about what you'd be doing if you weren't a CSI?" she asked suddenly, breaking the silence. It was a question that she'd been asking herself for a while now, and one that she'd been thinking about more frequently as her career had progressed. There was a time when Horatio had teased her about transferring to S.W.A.T. and, for a moment, she had almost allowed herself to consider it. Then of course there was the... _incident_ with Hagen which was the closest that she'd ever come to walking away from the job for good. When Tim had died, that was another point when she'd considered leaving. Then Ryan had the accident with the nail gun and she herself had nearly been run over and had a gun pointed at her head - more than once, actually - but when Eric had been shot, well, that was almost the final straw...

Eric took a moment to think about her question. He'd nearly walked away after Tim had died, and he knew that she'd thought about it, too; in fact, he suspected that perhaps even Horatio had. Marisol's death had nearly sent him over the edge, too, and something in Horatio had been lost that day as well. But, strangely, after his own shooting all Eric could remember was the overwhelming urge to get back to work. So great was his desire that he'd only taken two weeks off, partly because he was stubborn and refused to let a bullet ruin his life, but mostly because he wanted to see Calleigh again. She'd been there when he'd woken up in the hospital and he knew that he'd never forget how scared she looked and the comforting feeling that he'd had, knowing that she was there with him.

"Yeah, I do," he eventually replied. "I think I'd probably still be in underwater recovery. Or at least be doing something involving the water." She nodded and stretched her legs out, allowing his to settle beside hers. "What about you?" He asked.

"Sometimes," she murmured. "But, whenever I do, I always get as far as to think about leaving, but never what I'd be doing instead. Sure, the job's dangerous but there's something about it, you know? I guess I've just always imagined myself in law enforcement."

He was silent for a moment as he tried to picture her doing something besides their job, and he smiled when he realised that he couldn't - or at least not anything that fitted her as well as being a CSI, anyway. "What about becoming a lawyer?" he suddenly thought, thinking about her father.

She tensed against him at the idea, remembering past experiences about how stressed her dad used to get with his cases and why he'd turned to drinking. His job hadn't been the sole reason, though, and she got that, but it certainly hadn't helped. And she'd long ago decided that she didn't want to take the same route that he had; as much as she hated to admit it, part of her was a little afraid at ending up like him.

"You won't," she heard Eric say, as if he'd been reading her thoughts; obviously her discomfort hadn't gone unnoticed.

"I know," she smiled, most of her meaning it. "But, no, I don't think I'd be a lawyer."

"Professional prankster maybe?" he grinned against her ear before placing a kiss on her temple. "Stetler's personal pain in the ass?"

She laughed and relaxed again, her hands settling over his as he drew circles over her abdomen. He frowned as she gently removed his hands and pulled herself out of his grasp, smiling again when he realised that she was just turning herself round to face him.

"Well, I think I'd have some stiff competition from Horatio there," she finally replied with a laugh.

He smiled back and felt for her hands, pulling her closer to his body and he reached out to tuck her hair behind her ear; he didn't really need to, but he just wanted the excuse to run his hand through it, loving how soft it felt. "Yeah, their rumba was pretty... special," he laughed, pulling a face as he tried to imagine what it must have been like to have had to dance with both Horatio and Rick, and he laughed again when his brain told him, _'don't go there.' _

"Anyway," he began again, choosing to listen to his own advice. "I, for one, am glad that you've decided to forget about pranking Stetler just this once, even if it was because you were ordered to do so."

She eyed him curiously for a moment and couldn't help but take in the playful smirk that tugged at the corners of his mouth and she arched an eyebrow, knowing where he was going with this... "And why's that?" she asked, deciding to humour him.

"Well," he paused, bringing his forehead to rest against hers. "It means that we have more time for this..." He trailed off as he closed the distance between their lips to leave a soft and lingering kiss on her mouth, before moving to her jaw and doing the same thing along it.

"I guess you have a point," she murmured, emitting a small groan as he whispered another kiss at the nape of her neck. _'He had a point indeed...'_

**_/EC/_**

Stetler's hand clenched around his golf club as he watched Horatio execute another effortless drive, and he took a moment to compose himself; he had almost managed to do so when the lieutenant took another shot and the ball landed mere inches away from the hole. Stetler growled as he glanced down at the recording sheet, seeing that Horatio was winning by three shots and his only consolation was that they were still only on hole four; there were fourteen more to go and there was still plenty of time for him to make some leeway. Satisfied that it could be done, he glanced over at Horatio who was patiently waiting for Rick to take a drive before he putted, and he parted his legs, getting ready to swing his club. He was just about to do so when a loud squeal of excitement startled him from behind and he fluffed his shot, sending the ball sky high and into an area of trees on his right.

"I did it!" he heard Valera shriek happily. "I putted the ball without Frank!"

He spun round vehemently and locked onto her with such intensity that Valera actually found herself reaching for Tripp and drawing him in front of her, almost as a shield.

"How about you keep your trap shut!" Rick snarled, knowing that Horatio was likely to take a big lead from this, and he wasn't even sure that he'd be able to find his golf ball, let alone drive it back on course. Without giving Valera a chance to reply, however, he set off in search of his ball, deciding that in circumstances like this it would be okay to cheat, necessary even.

He grumbled his way through the vegetation and ran a hand through his hair when he realised that he had no idea where to start looking, and he was just about to stride back over to Valera and demand that she help him when through the leaves, he suddenly caught sight of something. His mouth hung open as his brain processed the scene in front of him before he finally got a hold of himself and he smirked; _'it was payback time.' _Without taking a moment more to think about it, he stepped forwards and cleared his throat, causing the canoodling couple in front of him to jump apart, looks of pure panic creeping across their features. _'Oh,' _Stetler thought with a grin._ 'This was going to be fun...'_

* * *

I'll decide how evil I want to be when I write the next chapter.

I should be able to start updating fast again, but there will probably only be another two chapters max.

Reviews very much appreciated!


	17. What It Comes Down To

Sorry guys, the old case of writer's block struck me. I s'pose it was bound to happen some time!

I usually write the chapters in one straight session, but wow did this take me ages! It was like, write one scene... oh, how about I make a cup of tea?/let's go for a drive!/I wonder if there's anything good on TV?

So, countless cups of tea, a random drive and Monday night's episode later - I was practically jumping up and down hysterically with that E/C scene(s)! - I finally came up with this...

The last chapter. It's been fun, but it really is time to put this story to rest now. In fact, I actually had no intention of carrying it on this long - I just really wanted to write in that branty swimming moment somehow!

Enjoy! x

* * *

**What It Comes Down To...**

* * *

A small squeal of excitement erupted from Valera as she hit a perfect - or at least perfect by her standards - drive and her ball sailed beautifully into the air. Ryan couldn't help but laugh; he would never have thought that a game of golf would be such a fantastic cure for a hangover.

"Do you think Stetler will be gone long enough for us all to do a runner?" Natalia groaned beside him, clearly not enjoying the said game.

He smiled and glanced over to the patch of trees that Rick had disappeared into and checked his watch, noting that the man had been gone for a good ten minutes now.

"Come on, Talia," Valera called over her shoulder as she made her way over to where her ball had landed. "Live a little!"

Ryan laughed and exchanged a look with Tripp, amazed at Valera's sudden newfound flair for golf and, with a lingering smile and a slight flick of the wrist, he tapped his ball into the designated dip. Then with a triumphant sigh, he quickly retrieved it and sat himself down on a grassy bank, patiently waiting for the rest of them to finish the hole, and he took a moment to think over the course of the weekend. Despite Calleigh's pranks that had hindered almost every activity that they'd done, Ryan found himself feeling that the team bonding session had actually gone pretty well and he felt that he'd learnt quite a lot about his colleagues this weekend...

Calleigh had exposed her previously well-disguised mean streak and although Stetler certainly deserved everything that he got, it was still a little scary. Ryan had also discovered that Valera was not simply a DNA specialist; she was a flirt who liked to party and either she was hormonal twenty-four/seven, or her mood really did change that often. He laughed again when he heard her talking to her golf ball in an attempt to get it to go where she wanted, and turned his attention to Tripp as the man executed a nice shot towards the hole. He felt that the detective had managed to inject some fun into the weekend, mainly through his exchanges with Maxine, and Ryan couldn't help but wish that he'd been there to witness their fiasco this morning. He'd learnt from Natalia about Valera's assumption that she'd '_spent the night'_ with both Frank and Horatio and, quite frankly, he was a little annoyed that he hadn't seen it, especially when he'd heard about Stetler's melting appearance - _'something that was obviously Calleigh's doing, of course."_

"Valera, this isn't crazy golf you know!" he heard Tripp suddenly snap and he looked over to the scene unfolding on his right. Frank was trying to coax Valera's golf club away from her; she'd managed to wedge her ball firmly between two tree roots and was attempting to smack it free.

"Would you just go back to your own ball and club!" she hissed back, smiling when she succeeded in releasing her ball and it flew across the ground - albeit a little further from the hole than she would have liked.

A laugh beside him caused Ryan to tear his gaze away and he grinned as he made eye contact with Natalia. He continued to stare at her for a moment, realising that for some reason, after this weekend, she'd firmly established herself as part of the team. Of course, everyone had already accepted that she was and had gone all out to help with her training (although, Ryan himself had been reluctant at first), but it was an entirely different thing to belong as opposed to just be. And hell, she'd even got intimate with Horatio during that orienteering exercise, regardless of whether it was innocent or not; even Calleigh, perhaps the most established member of the team, hadn't yet got to that stage; _'and she probably never would,' _Ryan thought._ 'Not if Eric had anything to say about it anyway...'_

"Mr. Wolfe?" a soft voice broke into his thoughts and he looked up quickly, feeling a little startled at Horatio's quiet approach. "Where's Rick?"

"He fluffed his shot a good while ago," Ryan replied. "He's still searching for his ball." He gestured over to the patch of trees that Stetler had disappeared into.

Horatio frowned behind his sunglasses and placed his hands on his hips, a little put out that his personal game with Rick had momentarily been forced to stop.

"Well, in that case I think..." He paused, already shifting his weight in the direction of the vegetation. "I think I'll go help him look."

Ryan watched as the lieutenant walked away and he smiled inwardly at the man's change in demeanor. Horatio had certainly come out of his shell a little bit during the course of this weekend and even seemed to be having some fun; it had been a long time since Ryan had seen him smile genuinely and he found himself feeling - dare he say it - grateful to Rick for forcing them to endure all of the activities.

Although, when he thought about it, the team bonding session had actually been down to Arthur's request. And perhaps the team had needed it after all. _'Besides,'_ Ryan smirked. _'It seemed to have worked wonders for Eric and Calleigh's relationship. Now that was definitely the biggest success story of the weekend...'_

**_/EC/_**

An uncomfortable silence had diffused throughout the clearing, spreading tension and panic as it moved. Calleigh had instinctively withdrawn from Eric and moved to the farthest possible point away from him. He hadn't seemed to notice, though, was instead obviously a little too shocked at Stetler's sudden and unwanted interruption.

Ideas began to pound through Calleigh's brain as she tried to come up with an excuse as to why she'd been indulging in what had clearly been a little foreplay with Eric, and she tucked her hair behind her ear in a nervous gesture when she realised that they had well and truly been rumbled. It was then that she decided that she had two choices; she could either be brutally honest and tell Stetler that she and Eric were in a relationship, or she could try to play it down...

But that was unlikely to work and there was no way that she was walking away from Eric; it wasn't fair and it had taken her too long to accept her feelings for him to give up now. And so with a sigh and a steely determination, she finally allowed herself to make eye contact with Stetler.

He smirked back at her, still not saying anything in an attempt to make both her and Eric squirm a little longer. Normally so good at keeping calm and collected, Calleigh hadn't been able to hide her discomfort at his intrusion and Rick was loving every minute of it. "Well, this is an interesting new development," he finally began. "I thought I'd made myself clear about this team bonding session not being used as an excuse for - "

"I'd appreciate it if you'd get straight to the point, Rick," Calleigh cut in tightly. She'd had enough of playing games and exchanging quips with him now - although, if she thought about it, that realisation was highly ironic considering that it had been her that had instigated all of the pranks.

He said nothing for a moment, merely raised his eyebrows and drew his arms across his chest. "There are rules, Duquesne, and rules are what allow teams, businesses and companies to run smoothly. There is no room for relationships within these rules; _reason and love keep little company together_."

Calleigh found herself momentarily stunned and she exchanged a look with Eric; _'had Stetler really just quoted Shakespeare?'_ She sighed and looked at the ground for a moment, needing to gather her thoughts and, as much as she hated to admit it, Rick did have a point. She knew that she'd do anything to protect Eric, even if he messed up badly and of course he'd do the same for her; no matter what the cost. Love and work made for a dangerous combination yes, but both she and Eric were professional enough to cope and if things went badly then -

She stopped that trail of thought there and then, and tried her hardest to suppress her doubts. She'd already done enough over analysing and so with a deep breath, she moved closer to Eric and slipped her hand through his, giving it a reassuring squeeze as she did so.

"Calleigh and I have been close for years, Stetler. Our relationship has never hurt the team," Eric suddenly spoke, feeling a lot calmer now he knew that Calleigh hadn't decided to run.

Rick studied them closely as he considered all of the possible things that he could impose on them. He was well within his rights to force one of them to transfer and, if he tried hard enough, he could even find grounds to suspend them; he had issued several warnings - not just today - about the 'no relationships between co-workers' policy and it was obvious that Delko and Duquesne had flat out ignored him. Then there was the option to lay off for a while, lull them into a false sense of security and then strike when they were least expecting it. 'O_h yes, that could be fun...'_

"Rick..." a familiar voice cut in to his thoughts and he frowned, realising that he hadn't even been aware of Horatio's presence. "Rick, I have an idea about how we can settle this."

"Horatio, this isn't - " Stetler paused, suddenly a little intrigued. "Go on..." he prompted, a nasty smirk colouring his features.

"The golf game," Horatio stated simply. "If I win, you leave _my_ lab alone. CSI Duquesne and CSI Delko will be considered solely my responsibility and you take a step back from interfering with the rest of the team."

"And if _I_ win?" Stetler asked, not sure whether he could agree to those terms.

"Then you are free to deliver any punishments that you see fit and I will have no right to challenge you. You may do as you will - providing that it abides by the pre-existing regulations of the lab." He watched as Rick hesitated, clearly weighing up the pros and cons to what he had just suggested, and he exchanged a knowing look with Calleigh. "You'll also no longer find yourself victim to strange and humiliating occurrences if you agree to this challenge," Horatio pushed, thinking that perhaps it might just be enough to convince Stetler. He didn't like to think of himself as an arrogant man, but he was pretty sure that he could beat Rick, and he already had a good lead on him. So he was hoping that he'd be able to maintain it.

"Okay," he heard Rick reply tentatively. "Challenge accepted. But I'll need another golf ball, I've lost mine."

Eric dug his hand into his pocket and produced his, knowing that he no longer had any need for it. He was a little worried about the fact that his relationship with Calleigh now rested on the outcome of a golf game and found his brain struggling to come to terms with how ridiculous it was, but he knew that Horatio and Stetler's feud ran deep and besides, it wasn't just love that kept little company with reason; severe dislike didn't, either...

The ball was suddenly snatched from his grasp as Stetler reached out and grabbed it, and Eric rolled his eyes, knowing that it was unlikely that he was going to receive a _thank you. _His gaze settled onto Horatio and he gave the lieutenant a nervous smile, silently pleading with him to not let him down, and he relaxed a little when Horatio gave him a reassuring nod.

"So, Rick," Horatio began, breaking eye contact with Eric. "Shall we begin?"

Stetler merely grunted in response and with a final lingering look at Calleigh and Eric, he strode back through the trees to find his way back to the golf course. Despite everything that was riding on this game, he couldn't help but feel safer than he had all weekend; not only did he now hold the upper-hand when it came to Calleigh, he had Horatio's promise that nothing more was going to happen to him and that feeling of safety was something that he was willing to risk anything for; '_he'd been through more than enough...'_

**_/EC/_**

With a satisfied smile and a feeling of accomplishment, Ryan bent down to remove his ball from the sixth hole. Tripp had already moved onto the seventh with Natali,a but he'd chosen to go slower with Valera, deciding that he didn't want to risk her wrath should they all leave her behind.

He took a moment to study the face of his watch and glanced behind him when he realised that it had a while since he'd seen Horatio or Stetler - '_or Eric and Calleigh for that matter.'_ As his eyes back tracked, he suddenly became aware of movement on his left and he just managed to dodge out the way in time as Valera's golf ball soared through the air towards him.

"A word of warning would be nice!" he hissed, his heart pumping a little faster than was really necessary. He hadn't really needed to snap, either, but he'd seen_ J__ackass_ and he was well aware that being hit by a golf ball would be a rather painful experience; especially considering the force that Valera was putting behind her drives.

"Well, you should have moved out of the way as soon as you'd putted," she simply replied and Ryan arched an eyebrow, a little confused. He'd expected her to have snapped back, and he shook his head when he realised what an enigma Valera really was; as far as he could tell, her mood swings had no apparent pattern; they were just random outbursts.

"Don't just stand there, Wolfe!" Stetler's voice suddenly barked. "If you've completed the hole, move on! Horatio and I have a game to play!"

Ryan spun round quickly to face the direction that Rick's voice had come from and he frowned when we noticed the small group that had formed around him. Horatio was in the process of completing the fifth hole while Calleigh and Eric were watching the game intently. He watched as Stetler placed his ball down and parted his legs, taking a moment to line up his shot and then in one smooth motion, he took it. The ball travelled an impressive distance and Ryan raised his eyebrows when he realised that Calleigh looked... _'nervous?'_

Deciding that he didn't want to know, he grabbed Valera by the arm and dragged her over to the seventh hole - "Ryan, I haven't finished!" - determined that he wasn't about to get in the way of whatever was going on behind him; the sheer concentration that was radiating from both Stetler and Horatio, coupled with Calleigh and Eric's obvious discomfort, told him that something big was going on and he didn't need to be a CSI to know that.

**_/EC/_**

Calleigh hugged her arms as a cool breeze washed over her. As much as she trusted and respected Horatio, she couldn't help but feel a little annoyed that her relationship with Eric was no longer under her control. Sure, she could say something and put a stop to this ridiculous war right now, but she knew that it wasn't simply about her and Eric. Stetler and Horatio had clashed a lot over the years and this weekend had been no exception; Rick seemed to have tried his hardest to take the position of alpha male and Horatio had gone out of his way to undermine him - something that she, too, had been doing.

She watched as he putted his ball and moved quickly onto the sixth hole, leaving Rick behind him and still struggling with the fifth. She allowed herself to relax a little and glanced at Stetler's scorecard, smiling when she saw that Horatio still had a lead on the man.

"You think H will walk it?" Eric asked beside her and, noticing that she looked cold, he removed his sweater and draped it around her shoulders.

"Well, he better," Calleigh laughed, trying to lighten the mood and, with an appreciative smile, she tugged at his sweater and slipped it over her top.

"Yeah," Eric replied, more to himself than anything. "I'm sure it will be fine." He was silent for a moment as he wondered whether he should voice his concerns and, eventually deciding that he needed her reassurance, he began again. "Cal, what happens if Stetler wins? I mean, it's not just us that will have to take the consequences. The whole lab will. Stetler would be like... God of the department!"

Despite herself, Calleigh found herself laughing again; Eric looked so serious. She knew he had a point, however, but it was one that she'd rather not dwell on and so instead, she took a step closer to him and responded with her most sincere look. "Horatio knows what he's doing. Trust in that."

Eric held her gaze for a moment before he eventually nodded and turned his attention back to the golf game, smiling when he saw that Rick had fluffed his attempt to complete the fifth hole while Horatio was already halfway through the sixth. He knew that it didn't necessarily matter who finished first when it came to golf - it was whoever completed the course with the least shots - but he suddenly felt confident that Horatio wasn't going to have a problem and, besides, all Eric could do now was wait and see what happened...

**_/EC/_**

The watch on Natalia's wrist told her that they'd been playing the game for a good two hours now, and she found herself feeling thankful that she only had one hole left to play. She and Frank had managed to move through the course fairly quickly, albeit not very skillfully - but then she certainly didn't profess to be a fantastic golfer. Ryan and Valera had managed to keep up the pace, too, and were currently in the process of completing the sixteenth hole. And, judging from the yells of frustration that could be heard reverberating around the course every now and then, Stetler wasn't very far behind either.

**_/EC/_**

Rick growled as he watched Horatio putt his ball and with a strong swing, he sent his own high into the air. He'd managed to close down the lieutenant's lead now to only one shot and he was patiently waiting for the man to make a mistake. Eric and Calleigh had become increasingly nervous as the game had gone on and Rick was using that as his inspiration; he was determined to win, not only because of what was at stake, but also because he would finally manage to get one up on both Calleigh and Horatio.

The lieutenant wasn't making it easy, however, and Rick sighed in frustration as Horatio executed another perfect drive at the start of the sixteenth hole. Stetler could see Ryan and Valera in the distance as they moved onto the penultimate hole and he suddenly realised how little time he had left to seal the game, and it was with that thought, that he parted his legs and swung at his ball again, breathing a sigh of relief when it settled a mere few inches away from the hole.

As Horatio approached his ball, he took a moment to glance behind him at Rick. He was starting to get a little anxious at how small his lead was and was trying his hardest to maintain it. Despite his severe dislike for Stetler, Horatio couldn't deny that the man was indeed good at golf, and the game was proving to be a far greater challenge than he had anticipated. He shared a look with Calleigh and smiled at her silent encouragement; he wasn't going to let her down and, moreover, he wasn't going to let the team down.

He came to stand next to his golf ball and observed the distance between it and the designated dip. His hand hovered over one of his golf clubs for a moment before he changed his mind and he reached for a different one instead, deciding that it would probably be the better one to use for this particular shot. Then with a deep breath and a quick re-check of the distance, he got himself into a driving position and brought his club down hard, wincing when a squeal of excitement caused him to mistime his hit and his ball travelled in the wrong direction.

"Did you see that, Ryan!" Valera shrieked. "Two shots! Two shots and I completed the hole!"

Stetler allowed himself to smile; for once he was glad for one of Valera's often inappropriate interruptions and, realising that he now had an opportunity to claim a shot back from Horatio, he putted quickly and moved onto the sixteenth hole; the one that the lieutenant was now struggling with.

"Calleigh?" Eric began, having witnessed Horatio's inadvertent blunder. "I'm not sure that - "

"Just stay positive, it will work out," she cut him off, not sure that she could handle hearing him complete that sentence. She didn't want to think about what the consequences would be if Stetler won the game and, considering how tenaciously she'd humiliated him over the weekend, she was pretty sure that he'd come down hardest on her. "There's still two holes left," she murmured, silently hoping that Horatio would be able to claw back his lead should Stetler be able to take advantage of his slight mishap.

She heard Eric groan when after two shots, Stetler was ready to putt his ball. Which he did, almost effortlessly. Horatio needed to complete the hole within his next shot to avoid falling behind Rick and she bit her lip as the lieutenant attempted to do so, breathing a sigh of relief when he succeeded. But they weren't out of the woods yet; the two men were now at a tie and with just a couple of holes to go, the game was hotting up...

**_/EC/_**

Natalia practically kissed the ground as she and Frank completed the course and, together, the two of them sat down on the grass and patiently waited for the others to follow suit. She released a satisfied sigh and closed her eyes, picturing the nice, long bath that she was going to have once they finally got back to Miami.

"Favourite moment of weekend?" Tripp suddenly asked beside her.

She paused to consider this for a moment as images of recent events flashed through her mind, and she smiled when one in particular stuck there. "Horatio doing the rumba with Stetler," she grinned. "I think that actually beats anything that Calleigh managed to do to Rick."

Frank laughed and gazed off into the distance in search of the two men in question. The two of them had always shared a mutual dislike, and being forced to dance the dance of love together had indeed been a highlight of this team bonding session, but as far as Frank was concerned, it wasn't his favourite moment.

"What about you?" Natalia prompted, reading his thoughts.

"Calleigh's speedboat prank. The way that Stetler flew into the water was priceless," he replied, laughing a little at the memory.

Natalia, however, found herself squirming as she was forced to relive her own speedboat experience. Together with Valera, she had actually feared for her life and if she was honest, she had no idea how neither of them had ended up in the water.

Her gaze hovered over Eric and Calleigh for a moment and she smiled when she noticed that Calleigh was wearing Eric's sweater, and how close the two of them were standing. Anyone could see how much they obviously felt for one another and, oddly, Natalia found herself feeling happy for the couple. Her own time with Eric had been fun - albeit scary at one point - but her feelings for him had long since evaporated; '_besides, it was clear he only had eyes for Calleigh now...'_

"Hey, Ryan," she suddenly heard Tripp say and she looked up as the other CSI and Valera approached. "Favourite moment of the weekend?"

Ryan nearly laughed; the past two days had practically been pure torture. '_No one should have to spend this much time with Stetler!'_

"I think this activity has been _my_ favourite," Valera cut in, feeling a little proud at her quick learning curve and this time, Ryan really did laugh.

"Well, it has been fairly painless," he chuckled. "But if I had to pick just one moment, it would be on the bridge when Calleigh untied me. I'd never felt more relieved in my entire life!"

He was met with a steely glare from both Natalia and Maxine, and he smiled sheepishly when he remembered that they hadn't been so lucky. He was just about to offer a few words of sympathy when Tripp suddenly gestured to a spot behind him and Ryan turned around to follow the man's arm.

"Looks like Stetler and Horatio are nearly done," Frank commented.

Ryan nodded and settled himself down next to Natalia so he could get a better look. He knew the game that the two men were playing was personal, and he couldn't help but feel that he was about to witness something great.

**_/EC/_**

Calleigh tensed as another drive took Rick closer to completing the final hole; Horatio needed to putt soon or else he was in danger of losing. As if reading her thoughts and sensing the urgency of the moment, the lieutenant acted quickly and hit a neat little shot that brought him within putting distance. Not to be outdone, however, Stetler countered perfectly and his drive put him in a fantastic position, just mere inches from the hole.

Realising how important his next hit was, Horatio took his time and studied carefully the gap between his ball and the dip and then finally and, with a gentle swing, he took his shot. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw his ball had found its target and he turned to Rick and raised his eyebrows, silently informing the man that he had to putt with his next shot or else he'd lose the game.

Time seemed to come to a halt as Rick took up his position and parted his legs, and Calleigh couldn't help but feel that this was going to be one of the most ridiculous and defining moments of her life. This was what everything had come down to. All of the pranks, her relationship with Eric, Horatio's long standing feud with Stetler and the future of the lab; all of it rested on whether Rick could make this shot or not. She allowed herself to smile when she realised that such a significant event was subject to such a simple game. But then that was exactly what the weekend had been; one giant game of fun, humility, war and love...

The seconds continued to tick by as Stetler gathered his courage and, deciding that he'd mustered as much as he possibly could, he brought his club down onto his golf ball. It appeared to travel in slow motion as it made its way towards the designated dip, and he heard Calleigh inhale a sharp intake of breath. As for himself, he'd stopped breathing long ago.

He turned to face her and she held his gaze, neither of them able to watch his ball any longer, and it wasn't until Horatio spoke that either of them knew who'd won.

"Well, Rick," the lieutenant's quiet voice began. "I suggest you take a vacation or something. It looks like you're not going to be needed around the lab for a while."

Stetler broke eye contact with Calleigh and his mouth hung open in disbelief when he saw that his ball was hovering on the very edge of the hole; it hadn't gone in. He'd lost. _'How was that even possible!'_

It wasn't until Eric swooped her into his arms that Calleigh finally caught on that Horatio had won the game and, deciding that professionalism had long since been abandoned, she wrapped her arms around Eric's neck and kissed him deeply. She broke away suddenly when she remembered that she hadn't yet thanked Horatio and so after wriggling herself out of Eric's embrace, she launched herself at her boss in a very 'Valera-like fashion' and hugged him tightly, so wrapped up in what Horatio's victory meant that she didn't even contemplate how out of character her gesture was.

Ryan raised his eyebrows as he watched the scene unfold and he shook his head in disbelief when Calleigh finally released Horatio, only to be swept into Eric's arms again. He watched as the couple shared another kiss and he couldn't help but feel like he was witnessing the tail end of a romantic movie; the kind that makes you roll your eyes at the cliché, but at the same time also produces that cute little feeling; because, honestly, who doesn't love a happy ending, fluff or no?

"Hey, Stetler?" he suddenly heard Eric call. "True or false. All is fair in love and war?"

Calleigh knew that his question didn't hold the same meaning that it had when he'd asked her; Eric was offering a peace gesture and she briefly wondered how long it would take for Rick to accept it, which she was certain he would; after all, he had nothing left to lose and, at this precise moment in time, his brain clearly wasn't working properly and so as Rick opened his mouth to speak, Calleigh reached up to Eric once more. She smiled into their kiss when she heard Stetler utter a single word:

"True."

And it was and always would be because when it comes down to it, anything goes when it comes to love and war.

* * *

**- Fin -**

* * *

So, there we have it. Seventeen chapters of farce, sillyness, hard-work, romance and cliff-hangers. It's all a bit random if you ask me and I'm amazed at how popular it's been, so thank you to everyone who reviewed/took the time to read it. I love you all, of course.

Anyway, I'm off to get started on my next project.

Reviews very much appreciated!


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